Chasing Glory
by JCI
Summary: After the 2011 World Championships, the Rock Rebels and their coach return home, but the glow of victory fades quickly and a year away from the Olympics, the spotlight grows harsher. Will they crumble or find the glory they've chased their whole lives?
1. Chapter 1

Payson pulled down the street and turned into the familiar parking lot. There were only a few empty spots and she frowned when she saw that her mother's car was in their reserved parking spot. Sighing she navigated her car into the spot next to it and looked up expecting to see the slightly mocking, _Reserved for Kmetko_ sign, but blinked when she looked up and saw it said, _Reserved for Keeler_. She checked the spot to her right where her mother's car was already parked, it still had their name on it. She looked to her left and nearly leapt out of her skin when she saw Sasha, sitting astride his motorcycle, pocketing his sunglasses.

She leapt out of her car quickly, her questions about the parking spot flying out of her head. She hadn't seen her coach since she'd left on a two week press tour following Worlds and she suddenly felt the overriding urge to hug him.

"Sasha," she said, smiling widely, an expression he returned as she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, sliding over the familiar leather jacket.

"Welcome home, Payson," he said, warmly, pulling back hands sliding along her arms, holding her gently at the elbows so he could look at her.

She slid from his grasp, her smile widening as she looked at him and then at the gym she called home. "I'm so glad to be back," she said.

"Do you like your spot?" he asked, nodding towards the reserved sign.

"This is your doing then?" she asked, quirking a brow in his direction.

Sasha shrugged lightly, rubbing a hand across the back of his neck. "As much as we all love and miss Emily, leaving the sign there was becoming uncomfortable and when your mother told me about the endorsement deal with Audi, I figured you could use your own spot, especially since you and Kim keep such different hours here. Nice wheels, by the way."

Payson smiled, looking back over the shiny black sports car that had been sitting in her driveway upon her arrival home the day before. "It's so..." she said, trailing off, not being able to help the admiring glance she gave the car.

"Flashy? Expensive?" he filled in for her.

"Not really _me_," she said, shrugging, "but it's a gorgeous car."

Sasha shook his head incredulously, "You still don't really see yourself, do you?" he muttered, though she heard him, flushing at the compliment and avoiding his eyes as she grabbed her gym bag from the backseat. He cleared his throat harshly, "So I hope you enjoyed your vacation," he said lightly, as they made their way into the Rock.

"Vacation?" she scoffed, "it was harder than any training you could possibly put me through."

And it had been. Her two weeks away, one in Los Angeles, the other in New York, had been jam packed with interviews, photo shoots, meetings with potential sponsors and even a few appearances. Her agent, Pete Carlisle, the same man who represented Michael Phelps hadn't _quite_ run her ragged, but it had been close.

After her second vault in the team finals, slightly sprained ankle and all, the media attention had been intense, but after being cleared by doctors for the all-around her stock rose even further.

Shocking everyone the way their team had, she and Kelly Parker had stormed through the all-around competition, claiming gold and bronze respectively. That had been the most unexpected victory of all. Payson hadn't quite thought herself at full strength for an all-around and it had little to do with the ankle she had wrapped heavily in the trainer's room prior to the competition. Despite landing the upgraded vault she and Sasha had trained hard after his return during the team final, she knew it had been pure dumb luck landing the skill, which was just as difficult as its description sounded, a round off, half on, forward layout with one and a half twists, and she couldn't be sure she'd be able to pull it off a second time. Then her beam routine, while solid, wasn't where she wanted it to be, the degree of difficulty lower than she'd like going into major international competition.

Despite those perceived deficiencies, thanks to a pain killer and her Schaposchnikova style bars routine, the style now favored by international judges, she'd edged a nose out in front of Ivanka Kirilenko, with Kelly Parker leaving Genghi Cho in the dust after Cho's attempt to land a handspring double twisting layout vault didn't go quite the way the Chinese gymnast planned. Cho landed on her ass and Kelly landed on the podium. A silver for Kaylie in the vault event finals and a bronze for Lauren on beam and the United States had come away with more medals than they could have dreamed of after that disastrous first day of team competition.

Sasha's short guffaw at her favoring his intense training regimen to her two weeks of press and appearances brought her back to present time.

"You ready to start again, to start the final push to the Olympics?" he asked, as they made their way into the Rock.

"Let's do it," she said.

* * *

><p>The Rock was bustling already, filled with gymnasts at all levels working to improve. The start of the Olympic year unofficially began after World Championships and despite only a handful of athletes at the Rock expecting to have a chance of making the Olympic team, the idea that the pinnacle of gymnastics competition was approaching increased the enthusiasm for training tenfold.<p>

Sasha watched Payson move away from him, dropping her gym bag down and moving off to the mats to start stretching. His eyes drifted from the newly crowned World Champion around the gym, the bustling open space suddenly screeched to a halt as all eyes turned towards Payson. Then suddenly, nearly all at once, everyone converged upon her, congratulations flowing continuously. He allowed it for a minute, then two and then another before he boomed, "Is this a gym or a meet and greet? Everyone back to work!"

He turned and moved into his office, intent on gathering the charts he'd outlined for the elite girls concerning the upgrades to their routines they would be making over the next few months, but hesitated upon seeing Summer van Horne at her desk, just as she was every morning, but something was different. He frowned to himself, annoyed that he cared at all, when he realized what it was, the monstrosity of an engagement ring that had adorned her finger for the last few weeks was conspicuously missing.

"Morning," he mumbled, trying to regain focus on why he'd entered the office at all.

"Good morning," Summer replied in that cheery way she had in the mornings, a tone he usually couldn't stand unless he'd had at least two cups of coffee. Unfortunately this morning he'd only had time for one. "Kim is out in the annex making some notes for the repairman coming tomorrow to work on the crack in the ceiling, there are three new junior elites and their parents coming by this afternoon for evaluations, Tara and Jake said they'd handle those and you've got some messages." She handed him a stack of, _While You Were Out_ slips, with her bare left hand, but he pretended not to notice, sticking them under the forms on the clipboard he retrieved from his desk.

"Thanks. I'm going to be on the floor most of the day. It's Payson and Kaylie's first day back, but I don't want the other girls too distracted by it. I'm also expecting a call from Marcus McGowan from the NGO, pull me off the floor if he calls."

He didn't give Summer a chance to answer, sliding out the door and taking the stairs two at a time down to the floor. To his left he saw Lauren and Payson stretching on the beam, chatting quietly. Sasha frowned and silently chastised himself. Payson's absence over the last two weeks had kept thoughts of Lauren's confession out of his head, but now she was back and he knew it would have to be dealt with and sooner rather than later.

Then all thoughts of dealing with that fiasco flew from his mind as he saw Kaylie Cruz walk into the Rock with Austin Tucker, no surprise there though he supposed he should talk to them about flouting the no-dating rule so obviously. No, what truly caught his eye was Kelly Parker, gym bag over her shoulder, hair pulled up in a high ponytail, her traditional devil horns nowhere in sight, biting her lip in an expression he rarely saw on the face of the former National and World Champion, uncertainty.

His eyes flickered around the gym, storms seemingly brewing in every corner and Sasha Belov suddenly realized that the next few months, traditionally the off season for elite and international gymnastics, filled with the dichotomous monotony of conditioning and the unbridled enthusiasm of working on new skills were about to get a lot more exciting and as activity in the Rock ground to a halt once again, everyone running over to greet Kaylie after her own two week absence for a string of appearances related to her eating disorder, he realized that excitement would have absolutely nothing to do with gymnastics.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, so it's not the sequel to NJYbA, but this is going to be a long one. I kept waiting after the finale for inspiration to strike, I started and stopped a bunch of different stories and none of the plots I came up with seemed good enough and I certainly didn't want to disappoint you guys with a crappy story, but FINALLY this morning a plot hit me like a ton of bricks and I had to write it. Obviously I had to make some judgments based upon hints the writers gave us in the 2B finale and other things I had to just put out there because they left a string hanging. Also, a few of the one-shots I posted as we went through this season, "On Your Own," "I Will Be" and "Come Monday" are a part of this universe. And finally, to answer the question I know most of you are screaming at your computer screens right now, yes, this will have Payson/Sasha, just not right away and maybe not in the way you expect, but this story's focus will never stray far from either of them. So settle in girls and boys, this is going to be a fun, crazy, bumpy ride! Let me know what you think of the start. Anything you think is coming? Put those predictions out there now! Can't wait to hear your theories.


	2. Chapter 2

Austin Tucker had loved only a few things in his twenty years. The first had been his little sister Audrey. The day his parents brought her home from the hospital and presented that strange, pink, wiggly creature to him had counted as the greatest in his short life. Then a year or two later his mother, fed up with him climbing and swinging and inevitably falling from the tallest point in every jungle gym in a ten mile radius brought him to a gymnastics class in the hopes that he would learn how to fall without hurting himself. The first time he saw a set of parallel bars he'd fallen desperately in love.

There was a time when he thought that he'd never feel that way about anything again, the closest he came was the affection he felt for his motorcycle Lolita and his English bulldog, Sam, but now, pulling up into his reserved parking spot at the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center, he knew that wasn't the case, because nestled behind him, her grip on his leather jacket firm, Kaylie Cruz had stolen his heart in a way he never thought anything else could or would. He couldn't put it into words and would probably offend her if he tried, but he was definitely head over heels in love with the girl. There was something about her, a glow that radiated from the inside out and drew him in, he was like a fly to honey.

The Rock parking lot was nearly full by the time they arrived. He smirked as he saw the new Audi sports car sitting conspicuously in what had used to be Emily Kmetko's reserved spot. He supposed it only made sense to give it to Payson being that there were two Keelers at the gym on a daily basis, keeping what could be very different schedules.

He cut the engine and Kaylie leapt off the bike quickly, handing him her helmet, and motioned the car pulling in behind them towards the spot that read clearly, _Reserved for Cruz_.

He frowned as he watched Kelly Parker pull her cherry red Mustang into the spot. He still didn't trust Parker, though Kaylie had nearly demanded he give her a chance. She'd also somehow talked him into letting Kelly stay with him, insisting that the girl he privately nicknamed Satan, had no where else to go. His lake house was quickly becoming very crowded with strays. He didn't mind sharing with Max, though that relationship was still a little awkward after the bombshell revelation that he was bi-sexual, but Kelly Parker was a different story all together.

"Are you sure about this?" Kelly asked, taking out her gym bag which had the Denver Elite logo blazoned across the side from her back seat and then leaning back in and grabbing Kaylie's as well. They'd all met up this morning at his house and they'd left Kaylie's car in his driveway, knowing that it would be difficult for Kelly to find a spot.

"I'm sure," Kaylie said, reassuringly, putting her bag over her should and nudging Austin subtly with her elbow as he climbed off Lolita.

He rubbed the offended area lightly and managed a grimace in Kelly's direction. "Sasha won't turn you away," he said, the only semi encouraging thought he could come up with on the spot, it was also likely the truth. Kaylie smiled at him brightly and he knew it was worth it.

They only managed to get a few steps into the Rock before they were besieged by tiny girls in leotards wanting to congratulate Kaylie on her recovery. Austin's eyes met Sasha's across the floor. He loved Kaylie, but there were times when she allowed herself to get caught up in the moment and this was one of them. She'd brought her friend here and as the crowd around her grew, the responsibility of getting Kelly up to Sasha's office clearly fell to him.

He nodded to Sasha and then flicked his eyes in the direction of the gym office. Sasha returned the nod, clearly understanding the message. Austin gripped Kelly's elbow lightly, "Come on," he said, to her leading her away from the crowd. She followed willingly, though she shot another desperate look in Kaylie's direction. "She couldn't help you with this anyway," Austin muttered as they mounted the stairs. Kelly suddenly resembled a prisoner being led to her death. "You know Sasha, he's going to want to hear it from you."

"Right, you're right," Kelly said softly, probably more to himself than him and he felt satisfied that he'd done the duty of her friend's boyfriend, if begrudgingly.

They slid through the glass doors and moved into the office.

"Austin, umm Kelly," Summer said, looking up from her desk. She made no attempt to hide the suspicion or curiosity in her voice or on her face. "Is there something I can help you with?" she asked, her eyes flickering to Kelly's arm where Austin still held her lightly.

He quickly dropped his hand at Summer's pointedly disapproving expression, having forgotten it was there. "No, we're just waiting for Sasha," he said, frowning at Summer. That woman had the uncanny ability to involve herself when her opinion was neither asked for nor needed.

"And your wait is over," Sasha quipped from the door and moved into the room, his presence nearly filling the space, much as it always did. Austin often wondered how he did that, but then he'd been accused of a similar effect himself, so perhaps it couldn't be taught. "What can I do for you?" he asked, leaning against his desk, eyebrows up expectantly.

Kelly looked towards Austin and then desperately to the door, obviously hoping Kaylie would arrive and rescue her from doing this herself. When no help seemed forthcoming she looked down at the ground. Austin rolled his eyes, Kelly Parker clearly was not used to asking for things.

"KP wants to come train at the Rock," he heard himself say, though when he'd decided to say it, he didn't recall.

Sasha leaned back at the force of the pronouncement. "Really?" he asked. "Did you speak to Marty about it?" he asked, addressing Kelly directly despite her not having uttered a word yet. Austin nearly snorted aloud at the obvious victory in Sasha's voice. Apparently that rivalry wasn't as dead and buried as the two men would like everyone to believe.

Kelly seemed to be able to respond to direct questions with obvious answers because she nodded, "Yeah, I did. Marty's a great coach, but he understands why I have to do this."

Intrigued, Sasha leaned forward, hands on his thighs, "And why do you need to do this?"

Kelly's shoulders straightened and her expression hardened. "I'm suing my parents for legal emancipation and I just...I just need to get the fuck away from my mother."

Summer gasped, probably at the use of foul language and Austin nearly rolled his eyes. He saw Sasha look sideways at the blonde gym manager. "You'll do an extra round of conditioning today. We don't tolerate profanity around here, we have too many little girls who like to imitate anything and everything our elite girls do."

Kelly stood there, silent, not sure what just happened, but Austin knew that was Sasha's way of saying, "Welcome to the family, Kelly."

"Come on," he said, grasping her elbow again, leading her from the room.

They made it half way down the stairs before Kelly started to pull away from his firm girl on her arm. "But wait, he didn't say if I could..."

"Yes, he did, he told you to do two rounds of conditioning today. You think he would have done that if he hadn't decided you could train here in his head. That was Sasha-speak for, 'You're in.'"

Suddenly it seemed the Kelly Parker he remembered from years on the gymnastics circuit reappeared. She rolled her eyes. "So he couldn't have just said that?"

"You get used to it," he assured her. "Sasha's a great coach. You should know that, he did just lead you all to a gold medal and you should probably get started on those circuits. Sasha doesn't joke about two things, fishing and conditioning."

She nodded to herself and began to walk towards where Payson and Lauren were stretching against the beam. Then she quickly turned and managed a smile, not the sarcastic smirk usually plastered across her face and oddly enough he found himself smiling back, "Thanks Tucker," before turning on her heel and walking away.

* * *

><p>Sasha watched Kelly approach Lauren and Payson neither of whom seemed put out in the slightest by her arrival. He assumed they both knew of her plans to join up.<p>

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Summer asked from his shoulder, watching the same scene.

Sasha frowned at the disapproval in her tone. "Kelly is a great gymnast, I wasn't aware we were in the habit of turning away world class talent."

"It's not her talent that worries me," Summer said and he finally turned to look at her. "Oh yeah, what then?"

"She had a bit of reputation for causing problems, particularly with our girls."

Sasha shot her an incredulous look and tried to bite his tongue, "Psyching out the competition is part of the sport," he began, but suddenly he couldn't contain himself, "and Kelly Parker certainly hasn't cornered the market on, what did you call it, _causing problems_." His tone was enough to make his point easily and Summer glared at him.

"I thought you'd forgiven her," she said, accusation laced through her tone. Her eyes even narrowed at him. "You didn't lie to her just to get a routine out of her did you? That's just...that's just _pathetic_, Sasha."

Sasha reeled back as though he'd been slapped. He stepped closer to her and lowered his voice. "I would _never_ do anything like that. I have forgiven her. It was a desperate act from a desperate girl and I think she's punished herself more for it than I ever could." He stepped back, his anger cooling slightly as Summer broke eye contact. "And speaking of that _situation_, she needs to come clean with Payson."

"Are you sure that's necessary?" she asked, looking out onto the floor again where the four elite girls were beginning their apparatus rotations together.

Sasha shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Of course it's necessary. What Lauren did didn't just affect me, it was a total and complete public humiliation for Payson, one she never should have had to endure."

"Maybe she should have thought about that before she kissed you," Summer muttered, but he heard her and the pain he'd buried for the last few weeks wrenched harshly in his chest.

He let the comment pass without a response because he still truly blamed himself for that kiss. "You can talk to her about it or I can, but either way she needs to come clean. We allowed her the victory and her celebration, but it's time. I can barely look at Kim, knowing what I know and not saying anything."

"Kim said she didn't want to reopen that wound for Payson," Summer continued as if she hadn't heard him. "Are you sure this won't just cause everyone unnecessary pain. Look how happy they are."

At his silence she continued, "Are you sure this isn't about your guilt? You can't still be blaming yourself for that kiss, can you? I swear, Sasha, your arrogance knows no bounds."

Sasha clenched his teeth and felt his jaw twitch in response to her accusation. Somehow he managed to rein in the large part of him that wanted to shout at her, but there was a tiny part of him that whispered, _maybe she's right, maybe this is about you, maybe it was always about you. _

Then images flashed through his mind, Payson looking devastated, crying herself to sleep, head held high walking into the gym, everyone whispering and giggling not even attempting to disguise their behavior and he felt more resolved than ever. He had enough, standing up and heading out towards the floor. Summer wasn't trying to spare Payson's feelings. She was backing down, just as she always did when it came to Lauren and real consequences. He knew this could possibly destroy a near life long friendship, but Payson deserved to know truth.

As he left the office he turned, "Talk to Lauren and tell her she has until the end of the week and if she doesn't tell Payson, I will."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, I know, setting a dangerous precedent, updating two days in a row, but I'm trying to build up my writing stamina again and there's no way to do that except to just keep writing. I'm off to enjoy some time by the pool in the sun. Those of you who were wondering what I meant by Payson/Sasha not quite happening in a way you'd expect, I just mean that when it happens in this story, it'll happen in a much more realistic fashion than it did in NJYbA. That fic was the dream, this fic is the reality. ;-)

Lastly, thanks for all the reviews everyone and keep 'em coming. I'm a review whore and you all know it.


	3. Chapter 3

Sasha jogged down the steps, heading out onto the floor. He saw Kelly finishing up her second circuit of conditioning and the other three elites leaning up against the beam, stretching, staying warm, but obviously waiting for him. "I want Payson and Kaylie on vault, warm up, I'll be right over. Kelly, go speak to Tara regarding your floor routine, she needs to know the ins and outs of your choreography." The three girls nodded, quickly moving at his instructions.

"Lauren," he said and the tiny blonde smiled up at him in the same way she had since the moment he'd forgiven her. "Instead of going through all four rotations, I only want you to hit beam, floor and vault, then whichever of the three gives you the most difficulty, work on that while the other girls are on bars."

It was the easiest way to explain it to her. Lauren, for all her faults, was a smart girl. She would know exactly why he was asking her to forgo her bars rotation. They'd just returned from an international competition where her bars set would have ranked among the weakest in the field, at least as far the serious competition was concerned. Her time was better spent working on the three events where she could legitimately help her team and herself medal in London.

Lauren bit her lip for a moment taking in his words and obviously letting his full meaning settle over her. She sighed, looking over at the uneven bars for a moment before sighing.

"You need to trust me to do what's best for your dream," he asked, quietly. "I think you and I both know working out on bars would be nothing except a waste of time at this point."

Lauren nodded her head fiercely, finally making eye contact with him again, "Okay."

"Good," Sasha said with a nod. "I'm glad we understand each other. Work on beam this rotation and when Kelly's done with Tara, pair up with her on vault. Payson and Kaylie will have moved on to bars by then."

Sasha stepped away, moving towards the vault where Payson and Kaylie were warming up, allowing Lauren a moment to herself. It was a difficult thing, especially for female gymnasts, being told that they were no longer considered an all-around gymnast. He'd thought about doing it before Worlds, but the mental repercussions of that revelation might have undone any possible improvements Lauren would have made on the other events without wasting her time on bars. He was especially glad he waited now that he knew Lauren had been carrying around the guilt associated with leaking the training cam tape to Ellen Beals. He'd also thought about waiting until after she and Payson hashed things out, but who knew how long that would take and he needed to be sure Lauren was mentally prepared, at least as far as her gymnastics were concerned, going into the American Cup in March, just a few months away.

* * *

><p>"Wonder what that's about?" Kaylie mumbled as she and Payson sat facing each other, pulling on each other's hands, stretching out their shoulders for the vault and the impact it would have on their bodies. She nodded towards Sasha and Lauren who were speaking quietly next to the beam.<p>

Payson released her hands, looking nonplussed, "No idea," she said, pulling one arm across her body and then the other, before shaking them loose. She shrugged. "None of our business I guess if he wanted to talk to her privately."

"And why did he split us up, usually the elites train together," Kaylie frowned. It was her first day back training after a long two weeks where she'd done dozens of appearances related both to winning at Worlds and her eating disorder. She'd been looking forward to things returning to normal in the gym, as they were far from normal outside of it. She and Payson had done some work together while in Los Angeles, a couple of gymnastics magazines, but other than that their paths had barely crossed. The general interest in Payson after their return from Rio had been commercial. She knew Payson had signed several deals, obviously the one with Healthy Bar, but also with Audi, Longines, and the double headed dragon that was Nike and Gatorade. The interest in her had been much less superficial and much less lucrative, mostly news outlets.

She certainly felt better since coming clean about her disorder, but it seemed that it had effectively killed her marketability.

"Kaylie?" Payson asked, her head tilted in obvious concern.

Kaylie shook her head and grinned, "Sorry, I sort of drifted for a second. Did you say something?"

Payson smiled her forgiveness, "Yeah, I was just wondering if..."

"Ladies, hope you're stretched out and ready to go," Sasha said, effectively cutting off whatever Payson was about to ask.

"Yep," Kaylie said. "Can't wait to get started again."

"Me neither," Payson said and they smiled at each other widely.

Sasha's smile matched theirs, "Good, show me what you've got. Kaylie start off with just a Yurchenko layout, work your way up to a one and a half and then the Amanar," he instructed as he made his way towards the landing mat. "Same for you Payson, half on with a half and then with a one and a half."

And so they ran, alternating down the long blue carpet towards the horse, building up to what eventually would be their highly difficult vaults. Kaylie frowned as once again she under-rotated the skill, trying to force her body around for the last half twist.

"Easy, Kaylie, don't force it. You've been out of the gym for two weeks. If your body wants to do a double today, let it do a double," Sasha said, grimacing.

She stood next to Sasha as Payson ran up to the horse, landing the vault as easily as she'd done it at Worlds.

"Payson's not having problems," she muttered, but Sasha heard her.

"The vault she chose wasn't at the edge of her physical limits," he said quietly. "Again, Payson," he instructed the blonde girl who nodded and moved back towards the end of the run. "If you or Austin had talked to me about your _strategy _before you began, I would have been able to sit down with you and discuss a higher degree of difficulty, like I did with Payson after I got back. The Amanar is one of the most difficult vaults to land consistently. It's not the end of the world if you downgrade it to a double. In fact that might be your best option, considering that you're going to be increasing your muscle mass over the next few months while working on the other apparatuses."

Kaylie furrowed her brow. "So you're saying I shouldn't do the Amanar anymore. I landed it in team finals and in event finals. I'm the World Silver medalist on vault. How can I just give that up?"

Sasha sighed. His eyebrows knit together and it seemed he was hunting around for the right words, "You're in recovery now Kaylie and I'm going to tell you the same thing I'll tell your father and your therapist, the Amanar might be possible for a Kaylie Cruz six weeks into recovery, you were still at the low end of your target weight range, but six months after, a year after, when we've built your muscle mass back to where it needs to be to compete all-around, that simply won't be the case."

Kaylie crossed her arms over her chest and watched as Payson flew past them again, landing and sticking, before nodding to herself and removing the wrist guards she wore to train. "Excellent, Payson," Sasha called. "Go get some water and start working in on bars."

Biting her lip she looked up at Sasha imploringly. Payson's DOD was a 6.5, and when Genghi Cho finally managed to land her ridiculous handspring on, double twisting layout off, hers would likely be a 6.5 as well. A double twisting Yurchenko was only out of a 5.8. She couldn't afford a seven tenths of a point drop in her all-around degree of difficulty.

Sasha seemed to sense her panic at the thought of losing ground. "You were only consistently going for a Yurchenko 1.5 before Worlds, Kaylie. Don't view it was a drop in degree of difficulty, when really it could be considered a net gain. We'll sit down this afternoon and go over some options, other than simply downgrading it to a double. It's the standard in gymnastics right now and if you land a solid double, it'll bring in a better score than a sloppy two and a half. You have to think big picture, Kaylie."

"Right," she said, nodding, hoping she was convincing enough to back him off the lecture she knew could continue for the rest of the day if she let it.

Sasha looked at her sharply for a moment before nodding. "Okay, go try it again, a double this time and then take five and work in with Payson on the bars."

* * *

><p>Kaylie walked stiffly away from him and then raced towards the horse, landing the double solidly, with just a small hop on the landing. "Nice job, Kaylie," he said, wondering if he handled that correctly. He knew he had to let her attempt the Amanar and fail before she would understand why he wanted her to downgrade, or at least attempt a different vault, but the last thing he wanted to do was have a conversation about body type and weight with his newly recovered anorexic gymnast. It had been difficult enough with Payson. His eyes flashed over to the newly crowned World Champion who was standing next to the water cooler as Kaylie got herself a drink.<p>

He watched her let down her hair, much of it having fallen loose from her signature bun as she vaulted repeatedly. She combed her fingers through it lightly, smiling at something Austin said as he sauntered over to the water cooler. Her eyes flickered over to him, probably feeling his gaze upon her, the smile growing a little wider as she noticed his attention. He found himself unthinkingly smiling back. He tilted his head in question, though what he was asking he had no idea, yet she seemed to understand it, at least instinctively, because she took her lower lip between her teeth, breaking eye contact and focusing on the floor before looking back up at him from beneath her lashes. There was something about that expression that made his breath catch in his throat. He coughed, taking a deep breath and running a hand through his hair to clear his head. When he refocused upon her she was no longer looking at him, but a soft flush was coloring her cheeks.

_What the hell are you doing, Belov? Focus. They shouldn't be hanging out at the water cooler. They should be training. _

"Payson, Kaylie on bar warm-ups. Lauren you had better be ready to show me your beam," he called out to them, perhaps a bit more sharply than he intended, sending them scattering. "Austin, shouldn't you be training on high bar since you nearly blew your all-around gold on that sloppy Jager."

"Aye, aye," Austin said with a good natured salute and strutting past him, toward the annex where the high bar was housed.

Sasha nodded towards Lauren, though he'd intended to work with the girls on bars first, that moment of...whatever the hell it had been...had quickly changed his mind. "We're going to add the round off full as your mount permanently, so falling one out of three times is no longer acceptable, do you understand?" he asked, as she set up the springboard.

Lauren set her jaw in that stubborn way of hers stepping back five steps before getting a running start into her round-off tuck full mount, her feet landing solidly on the beam before her center of gravity slipped and she was forced to leap off before she fell.

Sasha tilted his head, "Work on it until lunch. It has to be second nature by the time we get to London." He turned and moved off the mats, "Kaylie, you ready on bars?"

* * *

><p>Lauren grimaced as Sasha turned away from her, and huffed in frustration. Usually she landed her first attempt and it was after her muscles became fatigued that she began missing it.<p>

Her eyes drifted unwillingly towards where Sasha, Kaylie and Payson were working on the uneven bars, Kaylie swinging through several giant circles and pirouettes and Payson watching as she stood next to Sasha, both with stoic expressions upon their faces.

Bars hadn't ever been a particular favorite of hers, in fact they were her nemesis for as long as she'd begun seriously training, but to have them taken away and with them the dream of an all-around gold, no matter how unlikely that may have been, it stung. Despite the hurt, however, she knew Sasha was right. She'd finished third behind Genghi _and_ Ivanka on beam and if there was one thing she hated, it was losing. She knew she could blow both of them away on beam and the next time she saw them, she intended to do just that. She would make sure Sasha's faith in her wasn't misplaced. Stepping back to try again, she jogged towards the springboard into her round-off, tuck full and landed on the four inches again, this time her center perfect above the beam. She turned to see if Sasha had noticed, but he was still focused on the girls at the bars.

She watched as Sasha leaned down to say something to Payson, likely about Kaylie's routine. Payson nodded, seeming to agree and then motioned towards Kaylie though at that moment Kelly's floor music started blaring. Sasha placed a hand on Payson's shoulder and she leaned into him, explaining whatever point she was trying to get across.

Not much shocked Lauren Tanner. She'd been through enough in her seventeen years that it took a lot to shake her, but she couldn't help it, her jaw actually dropped at what she was seeing. Sasha's hand on Payson's shoulder, his thumb against the back of her neck and he was caressing the skin there lightly, brushing his thumb back and forth. Lauren looked away, shaking her head, trying to clear it, before looking again. Sasha's hand had dropped and Payson was chalking her grips while Kaylie dismounted from the high bar, landing her double layout neatly.

She had to be seeing things, it was probably just her conscience messing around with her, especially since while she had confessed to Sasha, she hadn't told Payson and currently had no intentions of doing so. Things were _finally_ good, despite Summer and her father breaking up. She knew that Summer would always be there for her, even if she wasn't her mother in the legal sense. Her Dad had her back, they were an unbreakable team and now that Sasha had forgiven her, everything was perfect. There was no way she was going to destroy the tight bond the Rock girls, including Kelly Parker, had forged in Rio.

She watched as Payson mounted the bars and then shook herself from her thoughts. Sasha wanted her landing her round-off full consistently and one out of two was not consistently.

Lauren moved back to start the mount again when Summer's voice rang out from the platform just outside the gym office. "Lauren, could you come up here for a moment? There's something I want to talk to you about."

She smiled up at her, "Sure, Summer," she said, "but first, watch this."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, a really, really, really bad precedent, updating three days in a row, but I just CAN'T STOP WRITING. I'm sure work will have something to say about that when I go back tomorrow, but there are only eleven days of school left, so yeah...lots of time to write over summer break. Anyway, this chapter was supposed to be about relationships and it was, but it was more about _gymnastics_ relationships than I originally intended. I thought it was better for you guys to know about these things before hand so it's not a loosey-goosey, mish-mosh as we go along, plus I feel like it's very Sasha to make his expectations clear as far as the year leading up to the Olympics pretty much from the first day. Also, I'm making a conscious effort to keep all of the plotlines tight and intertwined in this story, and my plots generally start with gymnastics. So yeah, anyway, thanks for all the reviews. I'd seriously forgotten how much reviews make me want to write and write and write some more. It's like a crack addiction, only you know, it doesn't cause death...just carpel tunnel. ;-) Don't forget to let me know what you think of this chapter, feed my addiction and I'll feed yours.


	4. Chapter 4

The Spruce Juice was packed when they arrived.

"It's the usual, right?" Austin asked, eyeing the line at the counter dubiously before glancing around for an empty table.

"Strawberry mango juicer," Payson said, offering him a five dollar bill, which he promptly ignored.

"Pineapple, watermelon, banana for me, the usual," Kaylie said, smiling at him sweetly.

He looked towards Kelly Parker who hesitated, staring at the chalkboard menu, "A mango mantra smoothie, I guess?"

"Good choice," Kaylie said, "everything here is good though. C'mon we'll go stand around awkwardly making the people taking up tables feel uncomfortable and leave. Payson can you help Austin carry everything?"

The two brunettes disappeared into the crowd and Austin watched the small frown appear on Payson's face, but she quickly erased it at his raised eyebrow. He ignored whatever was brewing there, though he knew it would probably come to a head eventually. Kaylie was the National Champion and World Team Captain, but Payson was the new World Champion and had been the Rock's leader long before Kaylie had won her National Championship and really had never relinquished that position. He shook his head, that was conflict he was going to avoid if he could. He had another mission at the moment.

"Would you just take the money?" Payson said, trying to push the five into his hand.

"Chill, Keeler. Don't get weird about money. We both have it. I'm buying this time, you get next time, okay?"

She rolled her eyes, but pocketed the money.

"So, when are you going to put Max out of his misery?" Austin asked, quirking an eyebrow at the small blonde who studiously avoided his eye.

"Misery? He seemed fine the last time we talked," she said and looked up at him, the frown a little deeper than before. "I've been away for two weeks. We talked and texted a bunch of times. _I was busy._"

Austin narrowed his eyes at her. "You know that's not what I'm talking about."

Payson shook her head in frustration, obviously having no idea what he was talking about. "Look, did he tell you to talk to me? Because really, if he has something he wants to say, he should say it to me himself. I told him in Rio that I wanted to go slow, that I thought we both threw that word, love, out really quickly. He said he understood."

"That wasn't what...forget it," Austin said, his brow furrowing, but he knew it wasn't like Payson to let a subject drop.

"What?" she asked, but he was saved as they reached the front of the line.

"Welcome to the Spruce Juice! What can I get you today?" an overly perky girl with pig tail braids and an unfortunate hat with a pine tree at the top asked.

Austin smiled in victory and Payson rolled her eyes, "Don't think we're done with this conversation."

"I wouldn't dream of it," he said. He ordered quickly, feeling the sting of Payson's glare on the side of his face. He was going to really lay into Max when he got back from PT today. He'd sworn that he would talk to Payson about the real reason why he hadn't gone after her full force, why Max played around with Lauren instead of focusing on the girl he wanted before he'd ever even set foot in Boulder, Colorado. Max was his friend, but so was Payson and she deserved the truth. Austin assumed Max had done it before they'd left Rio, but apparently not.

* * *

><p>"Lauren still isn't here?" Payson asked as they approached the table Kaylie and Kelly claimed.<p>

Kaylie shrugged, "She said she'd meet us as soon as she talked to Summer about something."

"Speak of the devil," KP said. Payson snorted and Austin had to cover a laugh at the irony as Lauren stepped up onto the Spruce Juice's patio and looked around for them.

Kaylie shot them both a glare before she turned towards her friend. "Lo!" she called out and Lauren caught sight of them quickly.

The queen of the beam marched over to the table before throwing herself into her chair dramatically, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Wow, what's the matter?" Payson asked, reaching down into the To-Go bag she'd gotten just in case Lauren hadn't made it in time. She hadn't seen Lauren look so _angry_ in a very long time. Pissed off and flustered were one thing, but this seemed to be complete and total rage.

"_Nothing," _Lauren said, scathingly, glaring at her.

"Sorry I asked," Payson muttered, handing over the smoothie they'd ordered her. "Here, we got you your usual."

Lauren grabbed the smoothie from her and took a sip, frowning at it, "Ugh, what is this?"

"Pomegranate Paradise, what you always get," Austin said, "right?" He looked around the table for help.

"It's disgusting," she said, pushing it away, scowling at the entire table.

Payson rolled her eyes and just ignored it. Obviously whatever Lauren spoke to Sasha about had her angry as a hornet and _nothing_ would be right or good enough. When Lauren was ready to talk about it, she would.

Kelly Parker, however, hadn't known Lauren as long or as well as the rest of them. "Wow, what crawled up your ass? Your friends were nice enough to get you a smoothie. You don't have to be such a raging bitch all the time, Lauren."

Payson gaped at her and judging by the silence reigning at the table, so were the others.

"What? I'm your friend and friends tell each other when they're being stupid. So just tell us what happened instead of acting like this." Kelly looked around at the rest of the table in a challenging sort of way. She was right, sort of.

Payson looked back towards Lauren, who was still glaring at KP, but then her expression softened and you could actually see the pain on her face. Payson sighed and the sound drew Lauren's glance. "Are you okay, Lo?"

Lauren bit her lip and looked away, "No, I...I'm not." She hesitated and then let out a deep breath. "Sasha decided that I won't be training bars anymore, just beam, vault and floor. He thinks it's a waste of my time at this point."

What she left unspoken was clear as day for the rest of them. Dropping an event from your training schedule meant the death of a dream, all hopes for an all-around medal were lost and while they might preach about team and working together, gymnastics was truly an individual sport and the all-around was the ultimate achievement, one Lauren could no longer pursue.

"Well that sucks," Austin said, leaning back in his chair with a sigh.

"I'm so sorry, Lo," Kaylie said softly.

Lauren rolled her eyes. "I don't want your pity, okay?"

"Okay," Kaylie said, raising her hands in surrender. "Our hour is almost up anyway, we better be heading back."

"I'll see you guys tomorrow, I have ballet class this afternoon," Payson said with a sigh. Despite embracing the artistry Sasha had incorporated into her gymnastics, there was nothing she dreaded more than an afternoon of being poked and prodded by Madam Viola who rarely had a kind word for anyone, let alone the sometimes mouthy gymnast who'd invaded her world of perfectly obedient ballerinas.

"Have fun," Austin teased, knowing just how much she loathed it.

"Shut up, Austin," she said with a friendly eye roll. "And don't think I forgot about whatever it was you were babbling about before."

"Yeah, yeah," he said, waving her off, both of them ignoring the blatantly curious looks from the other girls at their interplay.

They stood, clearing up their garbage and moving back out towards the parking lot, but Payson lagged behind a little and then touched Lauren's arm. The smaller blonde turned and raised her eyebrow in question.

"Look, I know we've kind of hit a rough patch lately after that whole thing with Max, but if you want to talk about it, I've been there."

Lauren looked away, but not before Payson saw her eyes shining with unshed tears. For a moment Payson thought she might start sobbing in the Spruce Juice parking lot, but she seemingly fought back the tears. "No, I'll be okay," she insisted, moving towards her car.

Payson nodded and gave her a small smile. "Okay." She moved around to her car, which she'd taken because she was headed to ballet class, not back to the Rock with the rest of them. She had the door open and was about to climb in.

"Hey Pay," Lauren called.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

"No problem."

Payson watched Lauren drive off and sighed. She and Lauren had their differences over the years, but first and foremost she was her teammate and for a gymnast, losing an apparatus was like losing a limb, even if it was your weakness. She frowned, thinking of weaknesses, as she steered her new Audi in the direction of Viola's ballet studio.

She knew she was in for a lecture as soon as she stepped foot in the lobby.

"Payson Keeler," the clipped British accent rang out from the door to the main studio. "What would you call that travesty of a floor routine you performed in Rio de Janeiro because I would not call either gymnastics or ballet. Did you forget everything I taught you?"

"Good afternoon, Madam Viola," she said, forcing her face into a smile.

"Hmmm," Viola said, twisting her lips into a disapproving pout. "We'll see."

She returned home two hours later, more emotionally exhausted than physically, but feeling oddly satisfied. She and Viola had made some headway in the beginnings of new choreography for her Olympic floor routine. She was loathe to leave behind her routine from Worlds, but as she grew accustomed to her height, her power moves were beginning to return and it was time to readjust in preparation for London. Her degree of difficulty on floor was the highest in the world, but it wouldn't be for long. Ivanka and Genghi wouldn't take losing the all-around lightly and the target on her back was large. She had to improve or be left behind.

"Mom, I'm home," she called into the house, taking off her jacket and hanging it in the hall closet.

"We're in the kitchen, Pay. Dinner in twenty minutes," her mother called back.

"Kay, I'm just going to shower first," she said, heading straight down the hallway towards her room, grabbing some lounge clothes, a pair of cotton shorts and a tank and making her way into the bathroom. A hot shower would do her good, helping to loosen muscles she hadn't used in two weeks and that would be aching the next morning.

She stepped under the steady rain spilling from the shower head and turned, letting it soak her hair thoroughly, before lifting the heavy weight off her neck and allowing the water to massage there as well. Then, as one frighteningly accurate jet stream spilled softly against the back of her neck, a heady sense of deja vu settled over her and suddenly it wasn't water against her neck, but the rough pad of a calloused thumb stroking there.

It happened so quickly this afternoon she was sure she had imagined it, her silly crush on her coach rearing its ugly head just as she was attempting to explain the flaw she observed in one of Kaylie's pirouettes on the high bar, but this was definitely a memory, not a dream, it had been real and just the thought of it set a low fire burning inside of her.

She forced herself to push the memory aside and in annoyance at herself, she turned the water from hot to cool, trying to douse the arousal spreading through her body. She shivered, at the rush of cool water, but it didn't rid her of the uncomfortably wonderful feeling his touch had inspired.

Frustrated, she finished her shower quickly, washing her hair and clipping it up at the top of her head, before scrubbing herself clean. She emerged from the bathroom just a few minutes later, letting her hair down as she entered the kitchen, following the delicious and vaguely familiar scent of whatever her mother was cooking.

"Mom," she said, walking into the kitchen, "are you making Romanian stuffed peppers?"

"I am, since it's our guest's favorite," she said, nodding towards the counter where Sasha was sitting.

Payson blinked and then shook her head incredulously. "Did I miss something?"

Sasha rolled his eyes a little and smiled. "The lease on the apartment I sub-let when I came back to Boulder was up and I can't move into my new apartment until next week, so..."

"So I insisted he stay here. We have a perfectly good guest room and you could use a few good meals," Kim said, obviously repeating the arguments she'd used to convince him.

"Your mother is nothing if not persuasive," he said to Payson.

She smiled her agreement. "Persuasive...I always thought of it as nagging until the point where you can't take it anymore so you give in," she said, smiling cheekily at her mother, who rolled her eyes.

"Alright you two, enough idle chit-chat, make yourselves useful and set the table. Your Dad went to go pick up Becca at the movies, they'll be home any minute."

Payson grabbed the stack of plates and handed them over to Sasha's waiting arms. He laid them out while she followed adding the flatware.

"Glasses," she muttered to herself, wandering back towards the cabinets. She opened the door and pushed up onto her toes to reach the water glasses on the second shelf when she felt a large, warm hand on her waist, holding her steady, while another reached over her head.

"I got it," he said, taking a glass from the shelf easily, the hand on her waist sliding upwards lightly as she moved off her toes. She felt his fingers twitch against the cotton of her tank top before they moved away entirely, taking another glass and walking towards the table to set them out.

Payson turned and leaned against the counter, studying his retreating back carefully. He couldn't know what he was doing to her. Sasha was a physical creature and their relationship had always possessed a physical element, beyond those few awkward days between their kiss and their frank discussion of their relationship. He communicated with touch as much as he did with words. He didn't understand what his touch did to her, he _couldn't_ know, otherwise he wouldn't continue it.

The doorbell jarred her from her thoughts, nearly causing her to leap out of her skin.

"Sasha, could you grab that? Mark probably forgot his house keys again," her mother asked, as she spatula'd the stuffed peppers into a serving dish.

Payson shook her head, placing two more glasses onto the table. She turned to grab one more, as they were setting the table for five instead of the usual four, when she caught sight of Sasha standing in the hallway, arms crossed over his chest and Max in the doorway looking extraordinarily uncomfortable and holding a small bouquet of roses that she assumed were for her.

She'd just made her way down the hallway to extricate Max from what had to be an incredibly awkward moment when her Dad and Becca made it to the door as well.

Payson rolled her eyes heavenward wondering what exactly she'd done to deserve this. The five of them stood in an unbearable awkward silence in the front hall. Max studiously avoided all eye contact with either Sasha or her Dad while Sasha was glaring at Max fiercely. Her father was looking at her with a mixture of curiosity and confusion and Becca's eyes were dancing with obvious glee at the drama unfolding right before her eyes.

"So," her little sister asked, smiling up at Payson, "what's for dinner?"

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, so there's a lot going on in this chapter that didn't actually happen in the text, but you all get it right? Is it bad I'm almost feeling sorry for Lauren? Easy now, I said _almost_. And if you guys couldn't tell, I'm making a real effort to have a huge overriding plot and then incorporate each character's individual story line by intertwining them _with_ that plot. Sort of like how the show does it, but I want to make sure it's all 100% gymnastics centered because I feel like sometimes the show gets away from that and that's when we get the mindless drama. These characters, they LIVE gymnastics, so I feel like everything should stem from that. Anyway, there are lots of conflicts brewing here, some of you have already guessed as to what they are, but there are others simmering under the surface. The real drama hasn't started yet, but we've only covered about 12 hours total of storytime, so get ready.

I also want to thank you all so much for your overwhelming response to _Chasing Glory_. I know it's not what a lot of you were waiting so very patiently for, but I can't tell you how much it means that you're still here and still reading and reviewing like CRAZY despite that. So thank you, thank you, thank you!

And sort of on that note, I love when you guys ask questions, but if you don't sign up for an account here, I can't answer them! And if I tried to answer questions in my author's notes, the author's note would be longer than the chapters! So...sign up. Some of you ask some really great things and I want to give you some insight, but I can't...unless you, say it together now, SIGN UP. ;-)


	5. Chapter 5

"I thought you said they were just friends," Mark Keeler whispered as they sat down at the kitchen table, allowing, at Kim's insistence, Max and Payson to have a moment alone.

Sasha snorted in disbelief, "He's nineteen years old and she's," he flitted his hand in the air allowing her parents to take whatever they wished from it.

"Hot?" Becca provided for him.

"A beautiful young woman," Kim said, narrowing her eyes at the threesome sitting at the table.

"Potayto, Potahto," Sasha said, "he doesn't want to be her friend."

He felt Kim's eyes upon him. They'd butted heads on this issue before and the little scene in her front hall brought the subject front and center again.

"I still don't see what's wrong with a young woman, responsible enough for a _professional athletic career_, having a boyfriend," Kim said. "Max is a good kid and Payson likes him. It's perfectly normal for her to have a boyfriend."

"I have two words for you, Emily Kmetko," Mark muttered. "Teenage boys want one thing and one thing only."

"And what's that?" Becca asked, smirking.

Sasha snorted as both Keeler parents glared at their younger daughter. Who knew Becca Keeler was such a smart ass? She quite reminded him of himself when he was younger.

Kim rolled her eyes. "Oh please, it's totally innocent. He brought her flowers as a welcome home."

"I think it's sweet," Becca chimed in again.

"It _was _sweet," Payson said as she entered the kitchen, "and all of you were completely awful to him."

Sasha cleared his throat at the glare she was shooting him, or rather everyone, but he thought he saw her eyes narrow just a little bit more when her gaze landed upon his face. "I reserve the right to be _awful_ to anyone so blatantly ignoring my rules."

Payson rolled her eyes, much like her mother had just moments before, as she found a vase in one of the cabinets. She filled it halfway with some water and arranged the roses into it. "You mean the no-dating rule that no one has followed since Marty's tenure at the Rock?" she shot back at him. "I'm just going to put these flowers in my room." She flounced out of the kitchen in a way Sasha hadn't quite thought her capable of.

"She told you," Mark said, laughter in his voice as he concentrated on digging into his stuffed pepper.

Sasha turned to Payson's father, having thought Mark Keeler was firmly on his side in this matter.

At his outraged expression, Mark swallowed quickly and explained, "Payson called the boy _sweet_. I'm not all that worried."

Sasha was perhaps even more confused than before. Weren't all fathers of teenaged daughters worried when teenaged boys started sniffing around? His own protective instincts had kicked in the moment he'd opened the door to see Max Spencer standing on the welcome mat looking shocked as all hell to see his coach standing there.

"You're not all that worried?" Sasha repeated.

Mark shook his head. "She called him sweet. Payson doesn't like sweet."

Becca nodded helpfully. "The smell of vanilla actually makes her gag."

Kim shook her head. "She's right, you are all awful. Max is a nice boy and I think he's good for Payson."

"What's good for Payson?" Payson herself, asked as she reentered the room, pulling her hair back into a loose bun at the top of her head and taking her seat across from him at the table.

"Ballet class," Sasha smoothly transitioned. "And how was your session with Madam Viola this afternoon?"

Payson pursed her lips. He knew she knew ballet wasn't the topic of conversation, but she allowed the change of subject. "The usual. She was furious at me for my performance on the first day of team competition, but she admitted I was better during the all-around. We made some headway on my new choreography. I have a DVD of it, if you want to take a look at it."

"_After_ dinner," Kim said, interrupting their conversation. "No shop talk at the dinner table."

Sasha smiled at Kim and her constant efforts to keep her family as normal as possible. It was a pleasant change from the insane families that usually lived in the world of elite gymnastics.

"So what's your new apartment like?" Kim asked, providing a change of subject.

"Nice, lots of room," he said, not sure what else to say about the place, real estate wasn't exactly an interest of his, nor was decorating.

"More room than the airstream?" Payson asked, eyes twinkling at him from across the table.

He allowed her teasing, tilting his head granting her the point. "More room than the airstream. It has walls and everything."

"And a lease?" Payson asked, her gaze more serious than perhaps he'd ever seen her before.

Sasha met her eyes seriously. "Twelve months," he said and he smiled when she did at his words. He nudged her foot under the table gently, hoping to reassure her. Her smile faltered a little and he drew back slightly, not sure what he'd been thinking, but then her foot angled towards his and pressed back lightly before moving away again.

"I don't understand, what happened to where you were living before?" Becca asked, frowning, obviously not understanding what a sub-let was.

He paused for a moment, choosing his words carefully. He didn't need to get into the reasons why he'd only sub-let an apartment upon his return, that he hadn't intended to stay past Worlds, but his girls had convinced him otherwise along the way. "I was sub-letting it, uh, temporarily when I got back from Romania. The other tenant was going away for a few months so I took over his lease. He's back, so I need a new place to live."

"Oh," Becca said, though her voice still held some confusion.

Payson seemed to sense his hesitancy to talk about it, so she changed the subject. "How did Phoebe do at the groomer today?" she asked her father.

Mark laughed. "She was fine until the woman tried to put one of those bows in her hair. I think we're going to have to find a new groomer."

Dinner was a pleasant experience and Sasha couldn't help but feel right at home with these people. He'd never had a family, not one that sat down and ate dinner together anyway and he found that it was rather nice.

"I'm taking Phoebe for a walk," Becca called, already half way down the hallway, Phoebe hot on her heels.

"You want to watch that DVD?" Payson asked, as they put away the last of the dishes. "I've already got some ideas for a new tumbling pass and I definitely want to redesign my second dance sequence."

Sasha nodded, drying his hands on the towel she held out for him. "Do you have a copy of the code of points?"

"Of course I do," she said, looking almost offended at the suggestion. "I'll be right back. It's in my room with the DVD."

He watched her go, his eyes drawn to the subtle sway of her hips as she exited the kitchen.

Sasha squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head. His brain had its wires crossed for weeks now, since just before Worlds, the night when the same _sweet_ boy who'd brought her flowers had somehow caused her to flee from the Tanner's send off party. She'd sobbed openly into his chest at the pain that idiot caused her, though she'd obviously forgiven him. That wasn't the problem though. The problem was in the moments before she'd looked up at him, tears in her eyes, his Bourbon soaked eyes hadn't recognized her. She'd emerged from the shadows in the Tanner's back garden, her hair and the dim lighting obscuring her face and he hadn't seen Payson Keeler, his gymnast, he'd seen a beautiful blonde woman with legs for days and curves any man would gladly lose himself in for a lifetime.

Ever since that moment his mind and his body hadn't quite seen eye to eye when it came to his World Champion gymnast. His _underage _World Champion gymnast. He had to pull himself together before other people began to notice his attraction to the girl he'd already been accused of having an inappropriate relationship with earlier that year.

It would be a lot easier if he didn't already know what her lips felt like and if he didn't know that her body fit perfectly into his, her curves melting into the hard planes of his body. He shook his head again, trying to clear it. This had to stop.

He wandered into the Keeler's living room, tossing himself onto one of the couches, the same couch he sat on the day he first told Payson of his plan to turn her into an artistic gymnast, a conversation he'd bungled from beginning to end. That had been the beginning, the moment he realized the lengths he'd have to go through to convince her of her grace and beauty, a mission he'd obviously taken too far.

And now just a few months later, after they'd agreed to trust in each other and work together just as he and Nicolae had, he was the one with the inappropriate feelings and suddenly he had far more empathy for her plight than he'd allowed himself all those months ago.

"Sorry that took so long," she said, walking back into the room, both the DVD and two packets of paper in her hand. "I knew I had a second copy, I just couldn't find it."

He managed a smile, accepting the thick packet of paper she handed him, before she turned towards the television.

Sasha nearly groaned aloud when she bent over to start up the television and DVD player. He lay back on the couch, squeezing his eyes shut, massaging his temples lightly.

He knew he shouldn't have agreed to Kim's suggestion of staying the week, but Payson had been at her ballet lesson at the time, out of sight and the thought of dealing with this physical attraction hadn't occurred to him. Though if he was being totally honest with himself, something he rarely did on this issue, that wasn't the problem. He was a grown man, he could control his physical urges. It was simply that he felt so much more for her than that, a feeling that could very easily blossom into something he didn't even want to think about let alone name.

He watched her settle on the other couch, curling up with a notepad and pen, opening the code of points to the Floor Exercise skills section and starting up the film.

The soft sounds of a violin filled the room and there on the screen she was standing in the center of the ballet studio, leg extended forward, toe pointed, one arm extended behind her, the other over her face. Then her limbs for flowing around her, one ghosting over and through the curve of her waist, the other climbing to the heavens, or at least it appeared that way. The leg she extended lifted into the air, before she spun up onto her toes, immediately into a beautiful pirouette, her head tilted back, neck gracefully bent as she spun to the music, floating across the floor as Viola pounded out the beat she should be keeping with her cane.

"What's the song called?" he asked, after the fifth time they'd watched it, the only sound was the scratching of her pen as she took careful notes. The rest of the family had gone to bed long ago, aside from Phoebe who was curled up next to him on the couch, relishing the novelty of a new person who would scratch behind her ears almost continuously.

"It's from the original score to _The Last of the Mohicans_. It's called 'Promontory.' Madam Viola found it; she said she thought it suited me."

He nodded. "It does." The full orchestra echoed from the television as she paused on the screen as obviously the routine would call for a tumbling pass at that moment.

"Right here," she said, pausing the video. "This is where I want to add the double arabian piked."

"Payson," he began with caution in his voice, "we talked about this, about knowing your limits when it comes to things like this." He'd barely gotten the words out before her eyes narrowed at him fiercely.

She frowned at him. "I know my limits. I can do the arabian tucked, there isn't any reason I can't do it piked. You know I'm going to need at least two F skills in my floor routine if I want any hope of beating Genghi Cho on floor. Genghi is going to show up in London with a double twisting, double back and her three and a half twist. The artistry in my routine will make up for not having any G rated skills, but I need at least F's and you know it."

"Payson," he started again, running a hand through his hair in frustration. She was right and she knew it, even worse she knew that _he_ knew it as well.

Yet again, she cut him off, as it reading his mind. "You know I'm right. You know I can't win in London without moves like this and you know I've regained most of my power. You knew what I was going to say the moment we sat down to watch this video, so why are you bothering to argue with me?"

He sighed and sat up, disturbing Phoebe who whimpered her discontent before leaping off the couch and moving towards her bed.

Sasha studied her carefully, his eyes burning into hers. "Because I needed to hear it from you, that you're ready for skills like this again. It's been a long time since you've thrown tricks like that, are you sure you're ready?"

There was a flash of uncertainty in her gaze for a moment, though he knew not about her abilities, but about his words. "You told me once that you trusted me, do you remember?" she asked, shocking the hell out of him.

He cleared his throat uncomfortably because he'd just recalled that conversation minutes before, thought for another reason entirely. "Of course I remember."

She lifted her chin defiantly and in that moment, hair piled messily atop her head, wearing slightly ragged pajama shorts and a tank top, she'd never look more formidable or more beautiful. "Then trust me when I say, I'm ready."

He studied her carefully for a moment, before nodding. "Good. Go get some sleep," he said, nodding in the direction of her bedroom. "We start at seven tomorrow morning."

Payson nodded, switching off the television with the remote control before standing and moving towards the hallway. She hesitated just outside the archway. "Phoebe and I go running every morning at six. You're more than welcome to come if you'd like."

"Sounds good," he said, standing as well, following her out of the room, towards the guest bedroom. "Good night, Payson," he said, quietly, the darkened hallway giving an intimacy to his tone he hadn't intended, but that somehow he didn't regret.

"Good night, Sasha," she whispered and slipped into her bedroom, not looking back.

* * *

><p>Lauren Tanner was not really a morning person, but her chosen path in life had forced her to become one. This morning however, she was up and out of the house even earlier than normal.<p>

The only good thing she could say about the day before was that it was over. Yet now that it was over, she had to face the consequences of it.

She was no longer an all-around gymnast. Her inability to put together a consistent bars routine that would compete on the international stage had finally buried her hopes for an all-around medal in London. She could accept that. It was something she'd viewed as inevitable. Though she'd secretly hoped the day would never come, it had and that was that.

Then, just before lunch, as if her day wasn't bad enough, Summer had called her into the gym office and proceeded to let her know that her furlough was over and that she needed to come clean to Payson about exactly who had edited and leaked the training cam video to Ellen Beals.

It had been a virtual miracle that Sasha had forgiven her for her actions and she was sure that Payson would not forgive as easily or as quickly. And so she went to the only place she could think of for support, the only place she knew she could go in a situation this desperate, the one person who she could count on to be her ally, no matter what.

She got out of her car and made her way to the door. She rang the bell and waited, knowing that it could take a minute or two in such a large house for someone to reach the door.

"Lauren?" Kaylie asked, still in her pajamas. "Is everything okay?"

Lauren took a deep breath and shook her head. "No, it's not. We have to talk."

"What's wrong?" she asked, stepping back and opening the door wider allowing Lauren to step inside.

"I did something...something awful and," she took a deep shuddering breath. She was suddenly unable to contain her tears, "and I don't think the person I did it to will ever be able to forgive me."

Kaylie looked at her, her brow creased, "Lauren, what did you do?"

Lauren choked on a sob, avoiding Kaylie's eyes. "It was me. I was the one who leaked the video of Payson and Sasha to Ellen Beals."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Oooh another cliff hanger. Don't be too upset though, it's almost the weekend and you did just get two updates in ONE DAY. ;-) Plus, I'm literally posting this and starting the next chapter, so it won't be too long a wait, I promise. Obviously, you all know me and you know how much I love writing from Sasha's point of view, so that part might have gone on a little longer than it was supposed to. I hope you guys see where he is at this point. He wavers between pretending that it doesn't exist, to opening admitting what he's feeling in his own mind, straight back to pretending that it doesn't exist. Somehow I don't think denial is going to sustain him for very long. What do you think?

And now we've come to it, the major conflict of this story begins. Lauren confessed to Kaylie? Any ideas why? Come on guys, there's a lot of ways this could go down and shit is about to hit the fan. What do you think? Let me know!

Also, if you're confused about the scene Sasha described from the Tanner's party, that's from my story, "I Will Be" which was a "missing moment" from episode 2.19. Go check it out if you haven't. It's a quick read.


	6. Chapter 6

Kaylie leaned forward in her chair, forearms resting against her thighs. "Lo, what were you thinking?" she asked.

Lauren wiped at her cheeks roughly, trying to rid herself of the tear tracks. She shifted uncomfortably on the couch. "I wasn't thinking. I just, I wanted Summer to marry my Dad and that video, it was the perfect way to break up Summer and Sasha."

Suddenly something clicked into place, Lauren's behavior the day before at lunch, snapping at Payson about the smoothie, it all made sense. "So that's why you were so upset yesterday? Because Summer told you that had to tell Payson?"

Lauren nodded, "It was both. I _was_ upset about the bars, but Payson is just...she'll never forgive me. I don't want to hurt her and this will just bring up all that hurt she went through all over again."

"That's no excuse," Kaylie said, with a sigh. "Lauren, you _never_ think. Do you know what could have happened? I mean it all worked out, but..."

Lauren cut her off, latching on to her words, "Exactly, it all worked out. Everything is _fine_ now, it's more than fine. We're World Champions, Sasha is back and we're all friends again. What Payson doesn't know won't hurt her. You know what will happen to our friendship, to our _team_ if I tell her."

"Everything will crumble," Kaylie answered, knowing it was the truth. Things had been running so smoothly since their win in Rio, if they could carry it over all the way through to the Olympics, team gold would be well within their grasp.

Lauren jumped on her tacit agreement. "And Summer and Sasha want me to tell Payson. It will ruin everything. Payson will _never _forgive me. You have to come with me and convince Sasha. He's the only reason Summer wants me to talk to Payson. She never even mentioned Payson before Worlds and she would have if she thought I should tell her. She thinks there's no reason to hurt Payson after everything she's been through, I know it. So we just have to convince Sasha."

Kaylie shook her head. It was sound reasoning. They'd all been through so much together and come out the stronger for it. There was voice inside of her however, and oddly enough it sounded a lot like Austin, telling her that telling the truth was a part of her recovery and that Payson deserved to know the truth.

"Was that what you meant in Rio about how some secrets are best kept silent?" she asked and Lauren looked away uncomfortably, but nodded.

Kaylie shook her head and huffed out a frustrated breath. Payson deserved to know the truth, but there was so much at stake, not just for their team, but for Payson herself. She'd just won a World Championship, she was the best gymnast in the world and that was a lot of pressure, plus she'd given up her amateur status, signing endorsement deals with some huge companies. Payson was practically supporting her family at this point. Kaylie knew Payson was strong, but she also knew first hand that the pressure could mount quickly and push someone over the edge without anyone noticing. She realized that she couldn't just make this decision as Payson's friend, she also had to make it as team captain. While her instincts as a friend were divided, as captain, she knew what had to be done.

"Come on," she said, standing and grabbing her keys. "Payson runs every day at Chautauqua Park, she won't be in the gym until seven. We should talk to Sasha before she gets to the gym."

The parking lot was empty and the doors to the gym still locked when they arrived.

"This would have been so much easier if he still had the airstream," Lauren said, as they loitered around the entrance waiting for the hum of Sasha's motorcycle.

"Where is he?" Kaylie said, crossing her arms across her chest and checking her watch again.

"Finally," she heard Lauren breathe, as they heard the distinct sound of an engine approaching the Rock.

* * *

><p>Their strides matched well, much to Payson's surprise, as they were separated in height by nearly a foot. She and Sasha kept a steady pace as they rounded the corner and jogged towards her house.<p>

"You run this route every morning?" Sasha asked as they entered the house, heading straight into the kitchen for some water.

"Yeah, it helps me clear my head before practice," she said, handing him a bottle of water, before grabbing one for herself. She leaned against the counter.

The click-clack of sharp nails against the tile floor of the kitchen drew their attention. "Oh there you are, you lazy lump," Payson said, affectionately to Phoebe who'd wanted no part of their run this morning, snuggled into her doggy bed and eyeing both Payson and Sasha as if they were crazy when left the house at six in the morning. "You go ahead and grab a shower first. I've got to take her out," Payson said, nodding towards the hallway before grabbing Phoebe's leash from the hook on the wall.

"Right," Sasha agreed, heading in that direction.

She turned towards Phoebe again, "Come on, girl," she said, and Phoebe followed without complaint, but then instead of walking towards the front door, she made a quick right and trailed Sasha into the guest room. "Phoebe!" Payson scolded.

She heard a masculine chuckle, followed by a playful yip. "Payson, I think you lost something," Sasha called from just beyond the door.

"Sorry," she said, standing in the doorway, feeling a flush rise up into her cheeks as she was greeted by an unobstructed view of Sasha's broad muscular back.

He turned quickly and she felt a tug of desire deep inside of her as he faced her, his shoulders and chest firm muscle lined sparsely with fair hair, his jogging shorts sitting low on his hips. He approached her with Phoebe in his arms, chuckling again as the tiny dog gave his chin an affectionate lick.

"She likes you," she said softly, scratching Phoebe behind the ears, before taking her from Sasha. Their forearms brushed, his skin burning against hers, causing her heart to flutter in a way she'd never felt before.

"She's a sweetheart," he said lowly, grinning down at her dog, before looking back up at her.

They stood in silence for a moment, before Payson shook her head, trying to break the heavy, but not exactly awkward tension. It was ridiculous that it kept happening. They'd moved on from this or at least he had. She smiled and nodded, before turning and leaving the room, Phoebe squirming in her arms, whining sharply, obviously wanting to go back and play with her new friend.

"Come on, Pheebs, time for your walk. Sasha will still be here when we get back only he won't be nearly as stinky," she said, loudly enough for her coach to hear her if his answering bark of laughter was any indication.

Twenty minutes later they were both showered and changed, though the rest of the Keeler family hadn't stirred and wouldn't for at least another hour or two. Neither Becca nor Kim would be at the Rock that day. Becca only trained Monday through Friday and Kim and Summer alternated Saturdays to keep things fair.

"Mom, Sasha and I are headed to the Rock," Payson obligatorily called into the silent house as she locked the door behind them.

She turned from the door and saw Sasha approaching her car slowly, running his fingertips slowly along the line of the hood. Payson swallowed, trying to ignore the way her skin itched to be touched by him in the same way.

"Tell me they didn't send you a bloody automatic?" he rasped, turning towards her with such an expression of unbridled longing that she actually laughed.

"It's a manual," she assured him. "I didn't know you were into cars," she said, pulling her car keys form her bag.

His eyes drifted back to the car and then flickered almost pathetically towards her keys. She shook her head in disbelief and shot him a lopsided grin before dangling the keys in front of him.

The smile that spread across his face should have been declared illegal as he took the keys and circled around to the driver's seat.

* * *

><p>"So we're all agreed," Kaylie said, looking from Lauren to Summer as they sat in Sasha's office waiting for his arrival. "The best thing to do in this situation is to just leave it alone."<p>

"I don't see what good telling Payson would do at this point. The only thing it will do is hurt you girls," Summer said, though the frown across her face bespoke of the uncertainty she felt on the issue. Kaylie knew when it came down to it, it would fall to her if Sasha wouldn't listen to their reasoning.

"Exactly," Lauren said, the relief at having people on her side obvious in her tone and across her face.

Kaylie nodded. She knew this was the right decision, it was the right thing for her team and in the end the right thing for her friends. What Payson didn't know wouldn't hurt her. She knew what a mess she'd made by telling Emily the truth about her kiss with Damon. Honesty was important, but friendships were _more_ important and team was most important of all.

Now they just had to convince Sasha. It wouldn't be easy, but it's what had to be done.

All three women jumped a little when they heard the doors to the Rock open.

"Go warm up. I'll be down in a minute," Sasha's voice rang out across the nearly empty gym followed by the sound of heavy footsteps on the stairs.

"Sasha," a female voice called out. Payson's voice. "My keys," she said, laughter in her voice.

"Ah, right, sorry," Sasha said. Kaylie looked at the other two in confusion, but neither seemed to have any idea at what they were talking about. They heard the soft jingle of keys changing hands and then Sasha's footfalls grew closer. He stepped into the office smiling widely.

"Good morning," he said, then looking around the room his brow furrowed in confusion. "Why aren't you girls warming up?"

"There's something we wanted to talk to you about," Kaylie said when Lauren's eyes drifted to the carpet.

Sasha nodded, "Okay," he said, sounding unsure, as if he couldn't imagine what the three of them would have to talk to him about that would require hanging around his office this early in the morning.

"Lauren told me, about what she did," Kaylie said, glancing towards her friend who was still avoiding Sasha's eyes. "And she told me about your conversation yesterday, about how you and Summer think she should come clean with Payson."

Kaylie took a deep breath, watching the tension appear at the corners of Sasha's eyes, his lips pressing into a thin line. He obviously didn't like where this conversation was headed.

"We don't think that..."

"We?" Sasha asked, looking at each of them in turn.

Kaylie nodded, "We don't think that Lauren should tell Payson what happened with the training cam video. I think at this point it wouldn't do anything other than hurt Payson and it would hurt our team. We're a strong unit right now and this would destroy that."

Sasha's eyes flew from Kaylie to Lauren, "And Lauren?"

Lauren finally looked up. She had tears in her eyes. "She'll hate me, Sasha. She'll hate me _forever_."

"And you?" Sasha rasped, looking towards Summer.

Summer lifted her chin and her eyes flashed in a defiance Kaylie didn't quite understand. "I think Lauren has learned her lesson and it doesn't make sense for anyone else to get hurt over it, especially after what they've just been through together."

"It's what's best for our team," Kaylie added, "and as team captain..."

"Stop, just stop," he said, his hand slashing through the air cutting her off. Sasha's eyes flickered between them, back and forth before he took three quick steps out to the office platform. "Payson, could you come up here please?" he called out, before turning back to them. "You are going to tell her and you are going to tell her right now or I will," he said quietly, moving further into the room, allowing space for Payson to slip into the office.

"Hey guys," Payson said, tilting her head in confusion, not expecting anyone other than Sasha to be there. "What's...what's going on? Is everything okay?" The room was silent and completely still, each occupant seemed ready to spring, aside from Sasha.

Sasha leaned against her mother's desk, arms crossed over his chest. She searched his eyes, but he wasn't looking at her, he was looking at Lauren. "Well?" he urged.

"I thought you'd forgiven me," Lauren said to him, tears streaming down her face.

Sasha nodded. "I have and part of that forgiveness, if you recall, was about how I know you have the capacity to be a better person than you know. Right now, Lauren, is the time to be that person."

"Forgive you for what?" Payson asked, shaking her head, looking around the room. "Would someone please tell me what's going on?" she demanded.

Lauren choked out a sob, though she refused to meet her eye. "It was me, Payson. I was the one who sent the training cam video to Ellen Beals."

Payson blinked and swallowed. She felt her throat constrict and she took a sharp breath. She opened her mouth, but no words came out.

"I am so sorry, Payson," Lauren said, the tears flowing freely, "Please, forgive me. I never meant to hurt you. I just wanted Summer to break up with Sasha. I wanted her to be my mother."

Suddenly, she found her voice. "And I was collateral damage?" she asked quietly, not expecting an answer and not receiving one, just more sobs from Lauren. She shook her head. "I don't...I don't know what to..." she trailed off, looking towards Sasha, whose understanding expression made her chest ache.

Lauren finally caught her breath enough to speak. "Payson, I know what I did was horrible. I know it was wrong, but..."

"Just shut up, Lauren," Payson said, unable to keep the bite from her tone. "Just stop talking."

"Please, Pay, you're one of my best friends. I need you to forgive me," Lauren said.

"I said, _shut up_." She couldn't help it, her voice raised to a shout. She closed her eyes and brought a hand to her forehead, pressing firmly, trying to fight off the blind rage building inside of her, though she didn't know why. Every instinct in her body was screaming at her to lash out.

"Payson," Summer began, "Teenagers do stupid, impulsive things all the time. What Lauren did was wrong, but she's here now, owning up to it, apologizing. I'm sure there are things you've done that you wish you could take back."

Her jaw dropped as she stared at Summer Van Horne. Was she implying what it sounded like she was implying? She studied the woman's face, brow furrowed in agitation, lips pursed. She absolutely was. Payson's eyes flashed. "Are you kidding me? You're comparing..." Shaking her head in disbelief, she changed tracks. "What are you ever doing here? This is none of your business."

Summer opened her mouth to respond, but Payson cut her off. "Don't bother, I don't want to hear it."

Kaylie stepped closer to her and Payson thought for a moment she was going to hug her, but then she started to speak. "Pay, what Lauren did was awful, but we're not just friends, we're teammates and we have to have each other's backs. I know she's sorry for what she did. I didn't even want to tell you, I knew how much this would hurt you."

"And you really think that was your call?" Payson asked incredulously. Was Kaylie serious? They weren't going to tell her. Her eyes flashed to each set in the room. The only one who would meet her eye was Sasha, the others looked away guiltily. Apparently it had been quite the little conspiracy.

"Well, I am team captain," Kaylie began and Payson scoffed harshly, effectively cutting off whatever condescending leadership speech Kaylie was about to put forth as an excuse.

Payson swallowed harshly, the reality of what Lauren just confessed finally sinking in, the betrayal and hurt bubbling to the surface as she realized Kaylie was somehow, astoundingly taking Lauren's side and she quickly looked into the eyes of her friends, the girls she'd _thought_ were her friends.

She inhaled deeply, pushing down the emotions swirling inside of her. Suddenly the only thing she could focus on, the only thing she wanted in her mind was the double arabian piked she and Sasha discussed the night before. Straightening her shoulders she took another deep breath before speaking. "I have to train. You," she looked towards Summer, "and you," she nodded towards Kaylie, "stay the hell away from me. And as for you," she made sure to hold Lauren's gaze firmly, "we're done."

She took the stairs two at a time, moving towards the floor, but unable to stop the tears that finally spilled from her eyes. She heard Sasha's voice call her name as he approached from behind her. "Payson," he said again. "I can't let you train when you're this upset. You'll get hurt."

A mirthless laugh escaped her throat, "I'm not sure how much more hurt I could stand today," she said, wiping fiercely at the tears slowly streaming over her cheeks. She took a deep steadying breath, hoping to stem the flow somehow. "How long have you known?" she asked, not sure if she wanted the answer.

"Lauren told me at Worlds, during the beam rotation of team finals. The only reason I didn't tell you was because of how beautifully you were performing. You didn't need this weighing on you along with everything else. I made a judgment call and maybe it was the wrong one."

She sniffed lightly, her breathing becoming regular now, the tears ceasing altogether. "No, you did the right thing," she said. She turned towards him, catching sight of Lauren and Kaylie descending the stairs from the gym office, moving towards the beam to begin stretching. "I want to work on my arabian double pike," she said softly, looking up at him pleadingly. Gymnastics was the only thing that could make this go away, at least for a little while. "Please, Sasha, I need..." she trailed off, not really having any idea what she needed, but he seemed to as he nodded in understanding.

"Warm up," he said quietly. "Tara and Jake will work with the other girls. Today it's just you and me."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Oh, Lauren. Just when you start to feel bad for her, she plays upon Kaylie's own insecurities and weaknesses and Summer's inability to follow through and manipulates the situation. Only this time, Sasha was there to step in. So yeah, this was just the tip of the iceberg as far as the fall out is concerned. I had promised a few of you a "nuclear" I believe was the term, reaction, but I swear I wrote this scene five different times and the only one that felt natural and Payson-esque was a quiet fury and wanting to bury herself in gymnastics. There will be a more...lively...reaction upcoming, but I DID give you a shirtless and holding an adorable puppy Sasha in this chapter, so you're all required to forgive me. ;-) Next chapter we check in with KP, Austin, Payson (obviously) as well as Max and we might even hear a little something from Kim Keeler, who I adore. She is the best mother on television right now, bar none.

As always, thank you for all the reviews. The response has been absolutely incredible. Please keep them coming. You all have such wonderful insights into the characters and storylines. Tell me what you like, what you don't like, what you think I could do better. Every time you give me your input, I become a better writer. So again, thank you!


	7. Chapter 7

Kelly Parker raced around picking up the crap strewn all over the living room and kitchen trying to fight down the retching feeling in her stomach. She was neat freak, she knew that. Messes gave her headaches, but there was no denying that living with a guy was gross. Two guys, however, was borderline obscene.

She spun in place taking in the virtually spotless sitting area, feeling a sense of accomplishment before her foot stepped into something cold and slimy.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before looking down and seeing a slice of pizza sticking out from underneath the couch. "Oh ew," she moaned, lifting her bare foot, watching tomato sauce slide from her heel back into the box. "So gross."

Grabbing at some napkins from the coffee table she wiped away the mess before pulling the pizza box out from its hiding spot under the couch and tossing it with the rest of the garbage in to the nearly full large black trash bag.

Footsteps caught her attention from the stairway and she reeled around to find a very sleepy looking Austin Tucker descending the stairs. He was rubbing at his eye with the heel of his hand, the other raking through his unfortunate bed head violently.

"How do you live like this?" she asked him in an exasperated tone.

Austin blinked at her and yawned deeply before looking around. "Like what?" he asked, taking in the nearly sparkling living room. "Place looks great, Kel, but you didn't have to clean up."

"Yes, I did," she told him in a frustrated tone. "The woman from social services is coming over this morning to observe me and even if she wasn't, this place was disgusting."

He shrugged noncommittally. "You should have told me, I would have gotten Janet to come by and clean."

"I did tell you and who's Janet?" she asked, hands landing on her hips.

Austin shot her an exasperated look. "My cleaning lady," he said wandering into the kitchen.

She followed behind him, dragging the bag of trash with her. "Time to find yourself a new cleaning lady, Tucker. I found crap around here that had easily been there for months."

Again, he shrugged with complete disinterest. "Doesn't really bother me."

Kelly snorted. "Obviously. Look, just, could you try and be polite to Teresa when she shows up. I have to show her I'm responsible."

"Who's Teresa?" he asked, grabbing the carton of orange juice from the fridge and drinking straight from it.

Kelly made a mental note not to touch anything in that refrigerator, before she sighed in frustration. "Teresa, the woman from social services, coming to observe me today. She should be here any minute. Could you, I don't know, put a shirt on or something?"

"You don't think she'll be impressed by my rock hard abs?" he asked, looking down at his bare torso with a frown.

Kelly crossed her arms over her chest. "She's a fifty year old civil servant whose job requires dealing with crappy families all day. Do you think she'll care about your abs even a little bit?" she bit out, looking through a pile of dry cleaning on the kitchen table and finding him a clean tee shirt. She tossed it in his direction. "Where's Max?" she asked.

"Out cold," Austin said. "We had a pretty intense Call of Duty marathon last night. He won't be up for hours."

The doorbell rang sharply, making Kelly jump a little. "That's her. Please be polite."

"Don't stress, KP," he said, pulling the shirt on over his head after replacing the orange juice in the fridge. "It'll be fine."

Kelly nodded, smoothing down the outfit she'd picked out. She'd wanted to go with a business casual look, but then realizing that Teresa would want to see the _real_ her, she'd put on what she was going to wear to the Rock that day.

She answered the door, smiling widely at the court appointed social worker who was there to determine whether or not she lived a safe and healthy lifestyle and was responsible enough to become legally emancipated. Once she had her approval she was a rubber stamp from a judge away from all of the endorsement money she'd earned over the years being out of her mother's control and set up in a flexible trust for her own use.

"Good morning," Kelly said, opening the door widely and allowing Teresa in. She'd only met the woman once, when she'd gone down to Boulder's CPS office to apply for emancipation. The process hadn't been nearly as complicated as she thought it would be.

"Good morning, Kelly," Teresa said, stepping inside. "I have to say, I'm not really used to driving through neighborhoods like this one when dealing with teenaged emancipation cases." The dark haired older woman looked around appreciatively. "This is a beautiful house."

"Thank you," Austin said, as he entered from the kitchen.

"This is Austin Tucker," Kelly said, introducing them. "Austin, this is my social worker, Teresa Alvarez. Austin's been letting me stay here. Once I have control over my endorsement money I'll be investing in a place of my own."

Teresa nodded thoughtfully, "And your connection to Mr. Tucker?" she asked, raising an eyebrow meaningfully.

Kelly frowned in confusion, before shaking her head wildly. "What? No, Austin...Austin is my friend Kaylie's boyfriend. We're," she hesitated searching around for the right word, "co-workers."

Teresa twisted her mouth into a doubtful pout, but continued. "Ah, yes. You list your place of employment as the Rocky Mountain Training Center. What is is that you do there?" she asked, reading it off a file she had in her hand.

Kelly looked at the woman, wondering if she was joking. They'd discussed this just a week before. "The Rocky Mountain _Gymnastics _ Training Center. I'm a gymnast, an elite gymnast. I'm on the US National team. We just came back from Rio where we won team gold and I won the bronze in the All-Around competition."

"Oh, that's right. You'll have to forgive me. It's been a long couple of weeks. You're the gymnast. I had in my head I was going to see a different girl today. Well, this living arrangement is unacceptable. You're a sixteen year old girl and Mr. Tucker is..."

"Twenty," Austin filled in for her. "You have nothing to worry about as far as Kelly staying here Mrs. Alvarez."

"Austin Stanley Tucker, where are you, you fuckhead? I swear I'm going to beat the shit out of you today. Rematch as soon as my Vicodin wears off!" a grumbly male voice called out from the top of the stairs.

The social worker eyed them both, her eye brows nearly disappearing into her hair line. "And who is that?"

"That's Max," Austin said, trying to be helpful. "He has a prescription for the Vicodin."

Kelly shook her head in disbelief. "Just shut up, Austin."

They managed to make it to the Rock without further incident. after Kelly explained that Max was a gymnast as well, recovering from an injury, thus the heavy pain medication and once again attempted to assure the now extraordinarily skeptical social worker than she and Austin were not involved. She'd been impressed with Kelly's car, but had wondered if it was practical for cold, Colorado winters. Things were not looking good.

"I'd like to speak with your coach," Teresa said as they walked into the Rock.

Kelly nodded, catching sight of Sasha working on floor with Payson. She and Teresa made their way towards the floor just as Payson threw herself into a double arabian piked. She under rotated it slightly, landing in a semi-controlled heap on the extra mat.

"Crap," Payson's voice echoed through the gym, as she slammed her hand against the cushioned mat in frustration. Kelly was impressed however. This was going to really up her already high DOD on floor.

"You're getting closer," Sasha said, holding out his hand to her and helping her up. His eyes lifted from Payson's form on the mat to Kelly who'd finally reached his side. "Payson, grab some water. We'll pick up again in a few minutes."

"Hey KP," Payson said, nodding towards her as she moved away from them.

"Hey Payson," she said, frowning in concern. Payson didn't look right. Her eyes drifted towards the beam where Kaylie and Lauren were working. Both stopped, their eyes on Payson as she moved by them without a second glance, keeping her eyes firmly ahead of her, no acknowledgement at all. Kelly sighed. She knew the whole _team_ thing was too good to be true, though she couldn't imagine what happened between yesterday and today to cause such a rift.

She shook her head, realizing belatedly that she hadn't introduced Sasha and Teresa. She turned back to them, but they'd obviously gotten on well enough without her.

"...excited to have her be a part of this gym." She caught the tail end of what Sasha said.

"Kelly," Teresa said, turning back towards her. "You go ahead. I'd like to observe what a normal day for you here is like."

"Sure," she said, plastering a smile across her face and turning towards Sasha, raising an eyebrow. He nodded, obviously understanding that she knew something was off.

"I'm working with Payson today on her new tumbling pass. I believe Tara has Kaylie and Lauren on beam. Jake should be finished with his level six class momentarily. Warm up and then I want you on vault. I want that Double Twisting Yurchenko to be flawless at the American Cup. Ms. Alvarez, feel free to observe from wherever you wish. If you'd like to watch Kelly work on vault, I'd suggest up against the far wall. We can have a chair brought down for you."

"I would like that, thank you," Teresa said, smiling at her slightly more than rough around the edges, but charming when he wanted to be, coach.

Kelly grinned at Sasha, who winked conspiratorially as he passed her, on his way to the storage locker to grab a chair. Suddenly things were looking up.

* * *

><p>Austin watched as Kelly walked the social worker over towards the vault and began stretching. He saw Payson standing by the water cooler, somehow looking like she'd already put in a full day's training and it was barely eight o'clock.<p>

"Hey Pay," he said, nodding towards her.

She looked up and he was stunned by the fierce glare he received in return. "Whoa, what's up?"

"Did you know too?" she asked, studying him carefully, as if she were trying to read the truth in his expression.

Austin frowned, tilting his head in confusion. It couldn't have anything to do with Max. As of last night Max hadn't uttered a word to Payson about being bisexual. "Know what?" he asked, hoping to cool her ire.

"About the training cam video," she hissed between clenched teeth.

His eyes grew wide as he stepped closer to her. "The one of you and Sasha? What happened?" he asked, keeping his voice low.

Payson sighed and she looked over her shoulder towards the beam where Kaylie and Lauren were standing. His eyes met Kaylie's and he could see the panic written in them. She was obviously terrified of whatever Payson was saying to him.

"Ask your girlfriend," she said simply and walked away from him towards the floor.

His mind reeled. Kaylie couldn't have had anything to do with that. She _wouldn't_ have, even on her worst day, even with the anorexia ravaging her mind and body. Could she? His eyes met hers again and he saw the fear there, but then his gaze drifted towards Lauren. His fears abated. Kaylie looked afraid, but Lauren looked absolutely terrified and almost broken.

He took a step in their direction, but was stopped by Sasha's voice. "Not here," his coach muttered under his breath. "We don't need an outburst on the gym floor with Kelly's social worker here."

Austin nodded. "Is Payson okay?" he asked, looking towards the blonde gymnast he now considered one of his closer friends.

Sasha took a deep breath. "It hasn't hit her yet."

"But it will," Austin finished for him. "And are you okay?" Austin knew how much grief Sasha suffered over that tape. He'd been practically labeled a pedophile by some and the whispers and innuendo had been rampant at Worlds, despite everyone's attempts to ignore it.

Sasha snorted, dismissing his concern. "I'm more worried about her and what this'll do to this team. What a bloody mess. You better get going, Austin and take it easy on the dismounts today. I saw you wincing yesterday. Is your knee acting up?"

Austin shook his head. "It's fine."

"Right," Sasha said, disbelief written clear as day across his face. "No dismounts today, nothing high impact on your knee."

He frowned, but nodded his assent. Sasha finally moved off, back towards Payson who was simply standing on the corner of the floor, staring off into space. He'd never seen her like that before and he shook his head. She brightened a little as Sasha approached, but she didn't seem herself, at all.

Austin glanced over towards Kaylie and Lauren again and made up his mind. He moved in that direction and avoiding looking at Lauren completely, stepped in front of Kaylie. "We need to talk," he said, "privately."

Kaylie frowned at his tone. "I have to train," she said, lightly.

"Now," he said, stalking away from her, somehow knowing she'd follow. He moved into the Rock's lobby and turned just in time to see her emerge through the doors.

"Austin, let me explain," she said softly, obviously thinking he knew more than he did.

"Go for it," he said, wanting her side of the story, silently hoping his instincts were correct and that she had nothing to do with sending that tape to Ellen Beals.

He listened quietly as she recounted what happened, from Lauren showing up at her door that morning, to her reasons for wanting to keep it from Payson, to Sasha's immediate reaction to their plan and Payson's quiet fury.

Finally, she finished, shaking her head, wrapping her arms around her torso, "I thought I was doing the right thing," she said, her voice catching a bit.

Austin sighed, stepping forward and wrapping his arms around her tightly. "Kaylie, you just..." he trailed off, before finding the right words, "you know that honesty, it's the most important part of your recovery and your slip today, it's a bad habit, one you can't fall back into."

She nodded into his chest. "I was just trying to make the right choice for our team. That's my job. God, Austin, she was so angry. I've never seen Payson like that. She didn't yell or anything, she just stood there and I could almost feel her vibrating, like the anger was just coming off of her."

"She has every right to be angry."

"I know. I just wish she understood where I was coming from. She used to be team captain, she knows what it's like to have that pressure on you, to try and choose what's right for everyone."

Austin pressed his lips together, keeping his opinion on their comparative leadership abilities to himself. Luckily Kaylie didn't notice his silence. "I should talk to her and apologize," she said, pulling away, almost as if she intended to do so now.

"Whoa," he said, reaching out and grasping her by the waist. "You said before she was vibrating?" he asked. Kaylie nodded. "Maybe you should give her a day or two to cool off, first," he suggested, "how about instead you call Gene and see if he can fit you in today. He should have some perspective on this."

"You think this is about my recovery?" she asked, stepping out of his grasp. "Not everything is about my ED, Austin. I made this decision as team captain and a friend, not as an anorexic."

Austin looked away and twisted his mouth into a frown. He tried to hold back, but the fact that she felt that way worried him and he had to say _something_. "You're right, not everything is about your ED, but this was. You were upset that Sasha downgraded the Amanar to a double and you were projecting your own fears about handling pressure onto Payson."

Kaylie crossed her arms over her chest. "You have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh I don't? Tell me Kaylie, when has Payson not been able to handle pressure? Has the spotlight ever overwhelmed her?"

"Well, no, not exactly, but it could have," she responded weakly, obviously beginning to see his point.

He raised his eyebrows and shook his head. "Call Gene, Kaylie, go talk to him. It's been almost three weeks since your last session, that's too long."

She nodded, biting her lip, obviously still at conflict with herself over what happened. She turned and walked back into the gym and Austin sighed heavily, wishing there was more he could do for her.

He followed behind her, shaking his head, trying to clear it. Sasha was right yesterday when he talked about his sloppy high bar routine. He watched Kaylie make her way back towards the beam. She and Lauren were whispering together furiously. Frowning, he'd nearly made it out the back door when he spotted Kelly working on upgrading her Yurchenko 1.5 to a double.

"Nice," he said, nodding after she landed a little over rotated, but still a solid vault.

"Thanks," she said, with a smile and a cautious look over her shoulder at Teresa the social worker. "I think today is going really well."

"Better for some than for others," he said, frowning towards the floor where Payson threw herself into a wicked looking arabian double pike, landing on the mat flawlessly, but not smiling in reaction or even looking satisfied with the move. She simply looked up at Sasha, waiting for his criticism.

"Yeah, what happened there?" she asked, quietly.

Another sigh pushed through his chest. It wasn't really his place to share. "I can't really say, just...Payson might need a friend in the next couple of days and I think maybe you might have to be that friend."

"It's that bad?" KP asked, frowning in the general direction of the beam, though neither Lauren nor Kaylie was looking towards them.

"Yeah," he said. "It's that bad."

* * *

><p>Sasha climbed up the office stairs, feeling more drained after a day of coaching than he had in a long while. Not for the first time he thanked his lucky stars that his assistant coaches were extraordinarily capable and that the gym could practically run itself. He'd spent the entire day working with Payson on her new tumbling passes. What had begun as upgrading to an arabian double pike, took what seemed like a natural progression to adding a new high difficulty combination for her first tumbling pass, forward double twist with a forward full. It was the virtual equivalent of a G rated skill, and easier to land consistently than Genghi Cho's 3.5 or her double twisting, double back.<p>

It was astounding the amount of focus and drive she could pour into her gymnastics, especially considering the mental turmoil she was going through.

He turned into the office and stopped short, surprised Summer was still at her desk, sorting through some paper work. The amount of anger that coursed through him at the mere sight of her made his jaw twitch. He was furious with her and her attempt to completely undermine his authority, not just as the girls' coach, but as her boss as well.

He took a deep steadying breath, not really having the energy to hash out the problem at that moment. "I'm out for the night," he said, moving towards his chair to grab his jacket.

She looked up at his, startled by the sound of his voice and nodded quickly. Then she shook her head. "Sasha I wanted to apologize for this morning. I know I should have discussed it with you before the girls brought their case to you. I just didn't want to see anyone get hurt."

His shoulders tensed. "We did discuss it, we discussed it yesterday and as far as I was concerned, that was the end of it. What you did today wasn't just inappropriate, it was unprofessional."

Summer's jaw dropped in indignation. "Excuse me. I was just trying to do what was best for..."

"For who? For Lauren? For Payson? You're not Lauren's mother, you're not even engaged to her father anymore, if the absence of that ridiculous ring is any indication. And as for Payson, she is none of your business as she told you quite firmly this morning." He knew his words hit home and he knew they hurt her, but the anger that had boiled up inside of him all day overpowered any feelings of remorse.

"I care about these girls," she shot back at him. "I care what happens to them."

Sasha shook his head. "That's wonderful," he said lowly, "but it's not your job to care about them. It's your job to file and color code and type out expense reports and purchase orders. It's my job to care about them and what's best both for them as gymnasts and as people, and if you ever get in the way of me doing my job ever again, there won't be a place for you here."

He grabbed his jacket and marched out of the office, finished with the conversation and he thought perhaps for the first time, finished with Summer Van Horne.

"Ready to go?" Payson voice cut through the silence as she emerged from the women's locker room, freshly showered and pulling on her jacket.

He smiled at her and nodded, though she obviously saw through it as they made their way outside. "Yeah, let's go," he said, taking the keys she offered him wordlessly and climbing behind the wheel.

"Are you going to tell your parents?" he asked, lowly as they waited at a red light.

"Not tonight," she said softly, gazing out the window onto the street.

Sasha nodded, "Okay. Don't wait too long. They're going to know something is wrong. You don't want to worry them." He frowned, respecting her right to tell her parents in her own time, but wondering how he was going to keep it from Kim Keeler any longer, especially once Monday morning rolled around and the rest of the gym was buzzing about it.

"I won't," she said, as the light turned green.

They pulled into her driveway and silently began to get out of the car when Sasha couldn't repress the urge any longer to comfort her. He reached over the console and grabbed her hand. "I didn't say it earlier, good job today, Payson. Regardless of everything else, you were phenomenal today."

She squeezed his fingers lightly and shot him a small smile, "Thank you."

Dinner was once again a lively affair with each of the Keeler's sharing anecdotes about their day. Payson put on a brave front, and her parents seemed none the wiser as she told them about her new tumbling passes.

"The arabian piked is really not that much harder than the tucked, but I'm really excited about the double, full combo. That's like adding a G-rated skill without nearly as much risk."

"Good for you, honey," Kim said, but her eyes met Sasha's from across almost the entire table and he could tell she wasn't happy with him.

At the pause in conversation Becca launched into a description of the holiday her friend Avery invited her on after the holidays in Cancun with her family. The ensuing conversation and debate over whether she should be allowed to go continued through dessert.

"Payson, I took Phoebe out last night. It's your turn," Becca said as her cellphone began to buzz frenetically.

Payson smiled and nodded. "C'mon, Pheebster, time for a walk," she called and the dog came running to her side.

"Let me help with those," Sasha said, gathering some dirty dishes from the table and bringing them over to the sink.

As soon as the sound of the front door closing echoed into the kitchen Kim reeled on him. "An arabian double pike," she said, though her meaning was clear. "I thought we discussed this, Sasha, after Payson came back."

Sasha ran a hand through his hair. He wasn't sure why he hadn't seen Kim's reaction coming. "Kim, you know I wouldn't let Payson do anything she wasn't capable of, she's ready for the arabian double pike."

"It's not her capabilities I'm worried about, it's the consequences of her capabilities," Kim said, frowning at him in that way of hers. "Her back..."

"Kim, Dr. Clijsters didn't place any restrictions on Payson in regards to her back. Payson is used to her height now, slowly but surely her power ability is returning. You saw the first blushes of it on the vault she landed at Worlds. You have to trust me on this."

He watched Kim nod her head quickly, but she still looked unsure. He turned towards Mark who was sitting at the counter nursing his coffee.

"He's right, Kim," he said to his wife, who was now gripping the counter top, her knuckles turning red and then white. "Kim," Mark said, again, trying to draw her attention.

Finally both men exhaled as Kim stood up straight, taking a deep breath. "I'm sorry, Sasha. You know we trust your judgment, it just...it just terrifies me, you know?"

Sasha nodded. "I understand, you're her mother, you don't want anything to happen to her."

Kim smiled a little. "You think you understand, but you don't really. You will someday though, when you have children, they become your life."

"Some day then you can stop by and say, 'I told you so,'" he said, grinning at her reassuringly.

He watched Kim's expression shift from a smile to a sly grin, so much like Payson's when she was feeling mischievous he nearly laughed. "And speaking of saying, 'I told you so,' have you noticed a difference in my gym co-manager lately."

Sasha felt his face grow hot at the mere thought of Summer Van Horne, but Kim mistook his anger for a flush of embarrassment. "Ah, so you have noticed."

He shook his head and reigned in his anger. "Kim, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but please, _don't_. Summer and I, that's long over and I just..."

"Say no more, Sasha," Mark interrupted, saving him from explaining to Kim why he no longer wanted anything to do with Summer, at least on a personal level. "We'll stay out of it, won't we?" he eyed his wife carefully, who rolled her eyes, but nodded her agreement.

"I appreciate that," Sasha said, with a sigh. "It was a long day. I think I'm going to call it a night."

The emotionally draining day took its toll on him and he knew that he would have to be up for a run at six the next morning. He was asleep almost before his head touched the pillow.

He'd always been a light sleeper however and his eyes darted open at a soft noise against his door. The sky outside was still inky black, nowhere near morning, but he slid from beneath his covers nonetheless, shivering slightly as the cool air hit his bare chest and feet. He cracked the door open, expecting Phoebe to be on the other side, looking for someone to scratch behind her ears like he had the night before, but his eyes grew wide as they looked at the floor where he'd expected Phoebe to slip in through the small opening.

Ten toes, painted a light pink color were splayed against the hardwood floor. His gaze traveled upward swiftly, taking in, long bare legs, black pajama shorts with little pink polka dots on them and a black tee-shirt, wrapped around those soft curves that he'd tried to banish from his mind for nearly a month now. He blinked himself awake, shaking his head before looking into her eyes. They were red-rimmed, tear tracks obvious against the soft skin of her cheeks. She looked _broken. _

"Sasha," she practically whimpered and he opened the door fully before she nearly fell into his arms.

His mind reeled at the situation he found himself in. What was the right thing to do here? Every instinct in his body was screaming at him to comfort her, to hold her tightly and let her cry, try to ease the pain somehow, but a tiny voice in the corner of his mind cautioned him. He knew what it would look like, a beautiful girl in his arms at an indecent hour, in a bedroom, in her parents house, she in her pajamas, him without a shirt. It bespoke of a different kind of comfort altogether.

Then the decision was made for him as her entire body trembled and he felt her hot tears spill onto his skin, one droplet spilling over his shoulder, the other running down his chest. All thoughts of impropriety took a back seat as he closed his arms around her and held her close.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay teaser, I know, but the scene doesn't end there. Promise. Not going to lie, this scene was in my head since the moment I thought up this plot line. I actually built the first six chapters of this story _around_ getting the characters to this moment. Now the fallout REALLY begins, LOTS anger and sadness and disappointment are thrown around. Next time, obviously we pick up with Payson and Sasha, Kim and Summer have a little "heart to heart," as do KP and Kaylie and Max...oh Max...the drama continues...

Let me know what you thought! Not just of the Payson/Sasha stuff, but all the characters. I've never dealt with most of them on this deep a level before, so I want to make sure I'm doing them justice. :-)


	8. Chapter 8

Warm and safe. Those were the only words Payson's mind could conjure up as Sasha's arms closed around her, drawing her against his chest. It was a familiar embrace and the one she sought out when she tried in vain to fall asleep.

She'd thought perhaps physical exhaustion would overpower the emotional upheaval of the day, but just as she settled on her bed, her eyes caught the photograph taken of her, Kaylie and Lauren on her first day at the Rock. They were twelve years old, all three looking slightly awkward, as most girls did at that age, but beyond happy to be training together.

That's when the tears began to fall. So she sat alone in the center of her bed, barely able to breathe, staring at that photograph, until she couldn't take the hollow feeling in her chest.

Out of pure instinct she found herself at his door, disregarding how entirely inappropriate it was for her to be there.

"Shhh," he murmured into her hair as she tried to bring her breathing under control. His large warm hand rubbed reassuring circles against her back, the other held her firmly at the waist. "Dacă aş putea, aş lua toate durerea, toate durere."

She didn't understand a word of it, but the emotion behind the words was clear. His embrace loosened as her breathing evened, though he lifted a hand to her hair, stroking gently, before he pressed a soft kiss against her forehead.

"Better?" he asked, though he still held her close.

Her eyes stayed closed as she leaned back slightly, nodding in affirmation. She didn't want to open her eyes. She knew if she looked at him she would see pity in his gaze and the last thing she wanted was to be pitied, especially by him. She took a deep breath, exhaling softly through her mouth. The hand in her hair drifted slowly to her neck, then over her shoulder.

"Open your eyes, Payson," he said, his tone not unlike the one he used while coaching.

She shook her head, turning her face down towards the floor. Then his hand was gone from her shoulder, tracing a path over her collarbone, against her neck, his knuckles brushing her jawline. "Look at me, Payson, open your eyes," he said, rougher and gentler all at the same time.

She felt one last tear fall as she opened her eyes, looking up at him through her lashes. He sighed as their eyes met and then leaned forward, pressing another soft kiss to her forehead.

"I'm sorry," she whispered. "I know I'm being ridiculous, but it just hurts so much. I never thought anything could hurt so much."

"Lauren is your friend," he said, taking a small step back, his arm sliding from her waist, "you don't expect betrayal from your friends."

"She isn't my friend," Payson said, feeling her shoulders stiffen. Suddenly the sadness was gone and that anger she'd been able to channel into her gymnastics earlier was back in full force. "Friends don't do what she did. A friend would never..." she trailed off and the sadness was back. "Damn it," she said, as the tears began to gather again, a lump in her throat appearing from nowhere.

"It's...it's all right, Payson," Sasha said, taking her hand and backing up just a few steps towards the bed. He sat down and tugged gently on her hand. She allowed him to guide her down, before his arm, warm and safe, just like before, wrapped around her shoulders. "Let it out. You held it in all day; talk to me."

Payson took a deep breath, trying to calm the sadness and keep the rage at bay. "I just never expected something like this and I feel like such an idiot. Lauren Tanner is the kind of person you _should_ expect something like this from. As soon as it happened, I should have known. And then today, Kaylie, she wanted to keep it from me. She of all people should know how awful it feels to be betrayed by a friend and how much worse the lies make it."

"She was trying to protect you," Sasha said, softly.

"Don't," she cut in, "don't make excuses or try to defend her. She wasn't trying to protect me. Lauren manipulated her, just like she always does and Kaylie shouldn't have been stupid enough to go along with it." Then something flickered in her mind, a piece of the conversation that lead to all this heart ache. "Lauren said you'd forgiven her," she whispered and felt Sasha's arm tense against her, his fingers pressing lightly into the skin of her arm.

"Lauren needs someone to believe in her," he said slowly, "not just as a gymnast, but as a person. I'm her coach, Payson, I'm supposed to be that person. No matter what she does to me."

Despite herself, she leaned her head onto his shoulder with a soft sigh. "You're a good man, Sasha, too good sometimes. You take too much on yourself, you take the blame for our failures and let us keep the credit for our victories. It isn't fair."

"It's my job," he explained simply. "It's what I was always meant to do."

"And she took that from you." Payson shook her head, "You weren't here," she said, feeling the anger begin to build again. "Every day there would be another comment or joke about what happened. Every day I had to hear about kissing you, about how it was my fault you left. She made sure I felt it every single day, Sasha and she did it with a straight face. I don't think I can forgive that and I'm not sure that I want to."

"I'm sorry that I wasn't..." he began, but she cut him off.

"That's not what I meant and you know it," she said, twisting her hands together, squeezing tightly. "I just keep going over it in my head, over and over again. It was one of two things, she either took the tape, edited it and sent it to Ellen Beals without thinking about how much it could hurt us or she thought about it and did it anyway. I'm not sure which one is worse."

Sasha's free hand landed softly on her restless ones. "I've thought of that as well."

"You're her coach, Sasha and when she did it, she wanted you gone, she wanted Summer to marry her father. But me? She was supposed to be my friend and my teammate and she just didn't care." She let out a soft, mirthless laugh. "And the worst part about all of this, she nearly destroyed your life, Sasha and my dream."

He sighed heavily. "It all worked out, Payson, in the end."

"She couldn't have known that. If I was one day behind in my training, if I'd twisted my ankle on my last tumbling pass in the gym my Dad rented for us, if World Trials had been just one day earlier, like they were _supposed_ to be, you and I watch 2012 from our sofas, if I'd been able to stomach watching it at all. Those whispers and giggles at Worlds, those would have been outright accusations and the end of your career. She sent that video and watch it all unfold and she never said a word. Do you know she even tried to put the blame on Kaylie? She said that Kaylie was feeling trapped by you because you were on to her anorexia and that she might have sent the video. Bet she didn't share that with our team captain when she talked her into keeping this from me," she vented, grateful that he allowed it.

She felt Sasha tense for a moment, before spoke. "Do you want her gone?" he asked.

Payson felt her breath catch. Did she want Lauren kicked out of the gym? Her behavior warranted it. She leaned back, looking him in the eye. There was an emotion in his gaze that she didn't quite understand. She swallowed hard at the intensity of his expression. "You would do that?"

"If that's what you wanted," he said.

"I thought you'd forgiven her?" she asked, brow furrowing in confusion. "That she needed you as a coach."

He nodded firmly. "I have forgiven her and she does need me, but," he hesitated, that intensity from just moments before somehow increasing. Payson could practically feel the snap of electricity in the air. "If you thought you wouldn't be able to train with her, then yes, Payson, I would do that."

"No," she said, after a moment and she could practically feel the relief spread through his body. "She should have to come to the Rock every day and see the both of us." The words flew out of her mouth before she could stop them. "Am I terrible for wanting that?"

Sasha shook his head, "No, you're not terrible because I know that's not the only reason."

Payson groused lightly, for the first time since he'd practically begged for her car keys this morning, her shoulders felt lighter. "I want it to be the only reason."

"But it's not," he said, sounding even more sure of himself than before. "Thank you, for not putting me in that position."

"I suppose you've earned a favor or two million from me," she said, softly.

"You don't owe me anything," he said, releasing her hand from his.

"I owe you _everything_," she corrected, ducking her head before glancing up at him sideways.

She watched his mouth move from a stern line into a small smile, the corners of his lips rising slightly, but enough to satisfy her. He reached out and affectionately tugged on a loose lock of hair that had fallen free from her pony tail. "Are you going to be able to sleep?" he asked, tucking it behind her ear, letting his knuckles brush against her jaw lightly, before he sat back, dropping his arm from her shoulder as well.

Payson nodded, mourning the loss of contact silently, hoping he couldn't read it on her face. "Yeah, I'll be okay now," she said, standing up and making her way towards his door.

Just as she reached it she turned to say goodnight, not expecting him to have followed her. Despite having been pressed up against him moments before, his body hovering over hers like it was, made her heart skip a beat. She braced a hand against the doorway, before pushing up onto her toes. "Good night," she said, gaining leverage against where his solid chest met his shoulder, "and thank you," she whispered against the whisker roughened skin of his cheek, before pressing a kiss there lightly.

"Thank you for what exactly?" Mark Keeler's voice rang out in the hallway and Payson, startled, fell to her feet.

She turned to see both of her parents standing in the hallway, her mother's eyes wide with shock, but her father's face twisted into an expression she'd never seen before. He was staring at Sasha and if looks could kill...

"Mom, Dad, this isn't," she began. "This isn't what it looks like at all. We were talking."

"Talking?" Kim said, "in the middle of the night, in a bedroom, in your pajamas or lack there of," she said, looking pointedly at Sasha, who flushed a little at her words.

"We were talking," Payson said, steering the conversation back into safe territory. "We were talking about something that I should have told you guys about tonight at dinner, but I just wasn't ready to. Sasha knew about it already, so I..." she trailed off hoping it was explanation enough.

"Payson?" Kim asked, obviously reading the truth in her daughter's words.

"Payson," Sasha whispered softly. "You have to tell them."

"Tell us what?" Mark asked, his voice still full of suspicion.

She sighed, looking towards Sasha who nodded his encouragement. "We know who sent the training cam video to Ellen Beals."

* * *

><p>Kaylie sat on the couch, looking down at her hands. So far the session had been normal . She and Gene had discussed her coming out at Worlds as well as her performances both and after the press conference, they talked about her father who was moving out for good, buying a house, oddly enough, near Austin, but she had no idea how to broach the subject of what happened the day before at the Rock or if she even wanted to.<p>

"You said earlier that Kelly is staying with Austin?" Gene asked, cutting into her thoughts.

"Yeah," Kaylie said, nodding. "She's suing her mother for emancipation and she needed a place to stay for a while, at least until the state allows her access to her endorsement earnings."

"And you're okay with that. You said you and Austin were a couple now, officially dating, isn't Kelly living with him a little awkward?"

"No," Kaylie said, though she thought about it hard this time. "I trust Austin and I can't believe I'm saying this, but I trust Kelly. Besides, it's only temporary. KP had a woman from social services down to observe her at practice yesterday and it seemed like it went really well."

"You haven't spoken to he about it?"

"No, I haven't had the chance. We've only been back for two days. There was a lot going on with training and getting back into the routine," Kaylie said, avoiding his eyes.

Finally, it seemed Gene had enough of her hedging. "You had so much going on that you couldn't find time to talk to her?"

She sighed heavily, "Okay, maybe I was avoiding her a little."

Her therapist seemed pleased the direction their conversation had taken. "And why would you do that?"

"Because I knew as soon as I spoke to her she was going to want to talk about what happened with Payson and I wasn't ready to do that yet."

"What happened with Payson?" Gene repeated, not asking, simply reaffirming what she'd said.

"It's the reason I called and made an appointment actually, though I'm not really sure if it was necessary. Lauren came to my house before training yesterday. She was really upset." She spilled every detail, first of Lauren coming to her house and confessing that she'd been the one to leak the training cam footage to Ellen Beals, then heading to the Rock to talk to Sasha after she'd determined keeping it from Payson was the right thing to do to Summer arriving at the gym and getting her on board with their plan to Sasha's complete disregard for their opinions and forcing Lauren to come clean then and there.

Gene sighed as she finished the story, relaying what Austin said as well. "Austin thinks this is about me projecting my insecurities onto Payson, but I swear that's not it. I was thinking of her and our team. We have to be a strong unit going into London next year and this is going to destroy it."

"I'm glad you called me, Kaylie," Gene said finally. "Why would Austin think you were projecting your own insecurities onto Payson?"

She shrugged, "I don't know. He said something about me being upset with Sasha for downgrading my vault and worrying about Payson because of what happened to me after my own success. That is a legitimate worry. I don't want Payson to crumble under the pressure. She's world champion now and that's a huge target on her back going into the Olympics. I don't want..."

"What happened to you to happen to her?" he finished for her as she trailed off. "And somehow you thought that by keeping Lauren's secret, Payson wouldn't feel the pressure?"

"Well, no, but it would keep our team together and team is everything to us, especially after that near disaster in Rio. We need each other."

"Kaylie, I want you to ask yourself something and I want to you to be totally honest."

She nodded. "I can do that."

Gene smiled, "I know you can. So ask yourself, do you resent Payson for winning in Rio?"

"What?" she asked, shaking her head and rolling her eyes. "No way. Payson is my friend and teammate. I'm so happy for her."

"But you were the National Champion, you were the only the fans wanted to see win, you were _supposed_ to win at Worlds."

"Well yeah, there was a certain expectation level for me, but I was out for a long time and coming back is a difficult thing."

"Payson came back, she came back from a fracture to her spine and she won gold," he continued to prod her. "So why couldn't you?"

"Because I was only competing on one stupid event at Worlds and even that wasn't good enough and now Sasha wants me to downgrade that skill as well. My DOD is going to fall behind Payson and Genghi Cho's on vault and I can't compete with Payson on floor or Ivanka on bars or Lauren on beam because I have to build up my muscle mass," she snapped, finally and then blinked, staring at Gene wide eyed.

He nodded to her.

"Oh," she said simply, suddenly feeling awful, but relieved all at the same time.

Gene nodded, "It's okay, Kaylie. This is what recovery is about. There are going to be bumps in the road, but that's why you have me, so we can talk things like this out."

* * *

><p>"So you're going to go apologize to Payson?" Austin asked, eyeing Kaylie carefully as she sat down at the counter in his kitchen.<p>

"Yeah, tomorrow morning. I just feel terrible, but at the same time, I still can't abandon Lauren. She's a part of this team too."

"When it's convenient for her," Austin said, frowning.

"She's my best friend, Austin. We've been through a lot together. I'd appreciate it if you'd try and get along with her," she said and he grinned at the soft smile he was giving her.

"Appreciate it how much?" he asked, standing in front of her, resting his hands against her hips lightly.

"I'd appreciate it _a lot_," she said, as he leaned down to steal a kiss. He pressed closer to try and deepen the kiss, but she pulled back. "I'm sorry, but I've got to go. I promised my Dad I'd help him with dinner tonight. He'd hopeless on his own."

Austin sighed, brushing his lips against hers again briefly. "Okay," he said, "I'll see you tomorrow."

"You're welcome to join us," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Uh, no thanks. Your Dad and I, we have a nice little truce going on and I don't want to mess it up by reminding him that we're dating."

Kaylie snorted, but he didn't let that sway him. "See you tomorrow," she said, kissing him goodbye after he walked her to the door.

"Afternoon delight?" Max said, wandering into the front hall as Kaylie pulled her car out of the driveway.

"Afternoon therapy session," Austin grumbled. "I love Kaylie, I really do," he said, "but sometimes she exhausts me."

"Price you pay for being with a complicated girl, Tucker," Max said, unhelpfully, patting him on the shoulder. "I would know."

"Payson's not all that complicated," Austin argued as they wandered into the living room, migrating naturally towards the television and setting up his XBox.

"Complicated enough. She's so strong, you know and driven, but I feel like there's this whole other side of her that she doesn't show to anyone."

Austin raised his eyebrows at his friend. "You're one to talk, Mr. I like to kiss guys and girls."

"I know, I know and I will tell her. I was going to go over there tonight."

"Tonight? Tonight might not be such a great idea, man. She and Lauren and Kaylie had a pretty big fight yesterday and Payson's probably not in the mood for another bombshell."

"A fight?" Max asked, furrowing his brow. "She didn't say anything about a fight. What happened?"

"Lauren was the one who leaked the training cam video of Payson and Sasha kissing to Ellen Beals and then she convinced Kaylie to try and keep it from Payson. She's furious with both of them."

Max's eyes grew wide. "Why didn't she tell me? I've got to go over there and see if she's okay."

"Max, man," Austin yelled to his rapidly disappearing back. "I don't think that's a good..." he heard the front door slam, "idea."

* * *

><p>Payson sat on the driveway, cross legged, various tools spread out in front of her.<p>

"Chain puller," Sasha asked from his prone position on the driveway, working on his bike.

"Chain puller?" she asked, frowning down at the pile of tools.

"The thing that looks like the claw from an arcade game," he explained.

"Why didn't you jus say that?" she asked, handing over the requested tool.

He scoffed lightly, but didn't answer, simply went back to his work. Payson studied him carefully, the lines around his eyes slightly more pronounced as he squinted at the inner workings of his motorcycle. The stubble that usually adorned his face was just reappearing as he'd shaved that morning, a smudge of grease on his cheek, mixing with the light sweat he built up as he worked. She watched the subtle flex of the muscles in his forearms as he manipulated the claw-thing against the motorcycle chain. Her heart rate increased just by looking at him. She shook her head before he could catch her at it, and squinted into the setting sun at the noise of a car pulling to a stop in front of her house.

"Max," she whispered, but Sasha heard her.

"I really should have a chat with that kid about the no dating rule," he muttered under his breath.

"I thought we talked about that," she said, airily as she stood up, dusting off her jeans before walking away towards the guy she was _supposed_ to be fantasizing about.

"Hey," she said, as he got out of his car.

"Hey, I wanted to stop by. Austin told me what happened yesterday."

Payson frowned. "Why would he do that?" she said, a little annoyed that he and Austin were talking about her behind her back.

"Because he's your friend and he's worried about you and I'm your..." he stopped short, "I'm worried about you too. You should have told me."

She glanced back behind her, towards Sasha who wasn't making any pretense about the fact that he was watching them.

"Let's take a walk," she suggested, her skin tingling at the simple idea that he was looking at her.

"How long is Sasha staying?" Max asked, as they moved down her street.

"Just until the end of the week," she said, shrugging and then she stopped. "Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you. I just...I wasn't really ready to talk about it yet and I was so angry at Lauren and Kaylie. I hate lies. Lies ruin everything," she said, turning to him. "Promise me that you'll never lie to me, even if you think it'll hurt me, please."

"I told you once, Payson, I value you too much to ever lie to you," he said quietly, but she could tell he was holding back.

"Max?" she asked, reaching out to him, taking his free hand lightly. He tugged on it suddenly, drawing her close and pressing his lips against hers. In shock, she didn't respond for a moment, but then he nudged his tongue gently against her lower lip and instinctively she opened her mouth to his. His hand left hers, tracing up her arm to her shoulder and then over her neck, his fingers brushing lightly against her nape, making her shiver.

At that touch it was no longer Max kissing her, though she knew the man in front of her was clean shaven with dark hair and deep, soulful brown eyes, she could practically feel the rough stubble against her cheeks and she wanted to bury hear hands into soft fair hair and look into stormy, grey eyes that were marked by his years. She lost herself in the kiss, in her fantasy until they both broke away gasping for air.

"If I knew you could kiss like that I wouldn't have waited this long," Max said, his distinctly American accent dragging her out of her imagination and back into reality.

Her eyes fluttered open and she saw him breathing deeply, staring at her in a way that made her feel powerful and beautiful, except he wasn't the one she wanted to be looking at her like that.

"You asked for honesty, Payson and I have to be honest with you, even if after I tell you this you might...you might not want to be with me anymore," he said and she forced herself to focus. He was obviously trying to tell her something important.

She nodded as he took her hand again. Their eyes met and then he looked away. "I don't, I really don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to say it. I'm bi-sexual."

Payson blinked, not sure if she'd heard him right. "You're...you're bi-sexual."

"Yeah. I know you're probably freaked out and I understand if you need some time to think about it, but..."

She cut him off, still not understanding, though she supposed strictly speaking she knew what bi-sexual meant. "So, you like girls and guys?"

"Yeah," he confirmed.

"Why are you telling me this?" she asked, confused. "I mean, it doesn't have anything to do with me or us, does it? I mean being bi-sexual doesn't mean that you're going to cheat on me or that you want to date a guy while you're dating me or whatever, so...I don't understand..."

"You're not turned off or freaked out?" he asked.

She nodded furiously. "Oh, I am, a little bit. I mean this is definitely _different_," she said, "but, I just...I'm not sure if I really _get _it."

"There isn't really much to get. I'm attracted to guys just as much as I'm attracted to girls."

"No, that part I get," she said, "but I'm just not sure where that leaves us."

He squeezed her hand gently and she jumped a little, having forgotten he was holding it. "It doesn't change anything. It doesn't change how I feel about you anyway. I...I love you, Payson and I know we said we'd take it slow in Rio, but I do, I love you. You're not like anyone I've ever met before and I just hope this doesn't change how you feel about me."

"Max, I..." she shook her head, feeling the pressure of everything he'd just said close down around her. "I don't know, I don't want it to change anything. I just, this is a lot to take in and..."

"No, I get it," he said, dropping her hand and stepping back. "you don't want to be with me now, right?"

"I didn't say that," Payson said, frowning at him for putting words in her mouth. "Am I the first person you told?" she asked.

"No, Austin knows. The night Lauren and I got into that accident, I got drunk and I kissed him and..."

Payson shook her head. "You kissed Austin?" she asked, weakly.

"Yeah," he said, "he was totally cool about it. I mean Austin is as straight as you can get, but he understood."

"You kissed Austin the same night I told you that I loved you," she managed to choke out.

He was caught up in his own recollection of the night, that much she could tell, "Yeah," he said.

"Are you serious?" she asked, trying to pull him into the present. "So what, you have feelings for Austin too? And me? And Lauren?"

"It's complicated," Max said, "I mean obviously nothing could ever happen with Austin, he's totally into Kaylie and I'm definitely not his type and Lauren's great, but...look I know you're freaked out."

"I'm not. Stop saying that," she said, shaking her head. "I'm not freaked out. You're bi-sexual, fine, great, I still don't get why you chose_ now_ to tell me, but fine. I don't think you even heard yourself just before though. Are you, have you really thought about how you feel about Austin? Because from what you just said..."

He cut her off. "I told you, it doesn't matter how I feel about Austin, it could never happen."

"Max," she said, shaking her head. "It does matter. It matters because if you have feelings for him, even if he doesn't return them, how could you _possibly_be in love with me?" she asked him, hoping that it sunk into his suddenly thick skull.

He stared at her, mouth hanging open, blinking rapidly as her meaning washed over him fully.

"You're confusing love with something else," she added. "You're confusing love with finding someone you _can_ be with because you can't be with the one you want."

"But I don't want to be with Austin," he said, though his voice didn't have any strength to it.

"You promised just a minute ago that you'd always be honest with me. If you didn't want to be with him, why would you kiss him? You didn't know how he would react. It could have destroyed your friendship, but you had to try even if there was just the smallest chance that he might kiss back."

"How do you...how did you..." he fumbled for the right words, but she knew what he was asking.

"I've been there," she said simply. "Look, you're a great guy, Max, but I won't be a consolation prize. I'm better than that and so are you."

There wasn't anything else to say and they soon realized that, so they wandered back towards her house. He pressed a small kiss to her cheek as he got into his car, Sasha watching from the driveway frowning at them.

"I'm sorry," he said softly before he turned the key, revving the engine and pulled away from her house.

She watched him drive off from the end of her driveway and despite herself she could feel Sasha slowly approaching from behind. She turned and saw him wiping his hands on a rag, still frowning.

"No need to remind him about the no dating rule, Sasha," she said simply. "I reminded him for you." She brushed by him, intending to go inside, not really wanting him to see her cry again.

"Hey," he said, reaching out and grabbing her hand before she could get passed him. "Are you okay, Payson?"

She nodded, quickly. "It's for the best. Relationships get in the way of winning gold and if this week has taught me anything it's that I'm never letting anything get in the way of my goals ever again." Then she pulled her wrist from his loose grip and nearly ran into the house as the tears began to spill again.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, so this chapter went places it wasn't supposed to go, but I think I like it better than where I had planned to take it originally. Lots of emotional upheaval and craziness and well of course shirtless Sasha at the start and then sweaty, greasy, fixing a motorcycle Sasha at end, so really no one should have any complaints. ;-) Let me know what you thought, superficial or deep, I want your reactions!


	9. Chapter 9

Kim glanced up as she heard two sets of footsteps approaching the kitchen. Ragged breathing was the only other sound that echoed through the front hallway.

"Breakfast?" she asked, as Payson rounded the corner, Sasha just behind her.

"I could get used to this," Sasha joked lightly as he moved around her daughter, inhaling deeply, before retrieving two bottles of water from the fridge. "You spoil me too much and I won't want to leave."

"Egg whites and toast, Pay?" Kim asked her daughter, who spared her a small smile and nod before sitting down at the counter. Kim frowned as Payson's eyes focused on the tile, her gaze going blank. She turned towards Sasha, but he was looking at Payson, concern easily apparent in his expression.

"We really pushed it today," he said, taking a seat next to her. "Your knee feel okay?" he asked, out of concern for the soreness that sometimes cropped up and had since just before Worlds.

"It's fine," Payson responded quietly, taking a sip from her water bottle and going back to studying the counter intently.

Her daughter had been this way since the day before, quiet, withdrawn. It had been a tough couple of days for Payson.

"Did you take Phoebe out already?" Payson asked, glancing over at the puppy, who raised her head at the mere mention of her name.

"Yep," Kim said, picking up the large pan and sliding one egg white omelet in Sasha's plate and the other into Payson's. "Your favorite, Pay, green peppers and died tomatoes."

Payson looked up with another soft smile before silently digging into her breakfast.

They ate in silence and then after thanking her both retreated to get ready for the day. Kim sighed, watching them silently leave the kitchen and shook her head.

She and Mark had wandered out towards the kitchen to indulge in some late night ice cream. It was a secret they indulged int from time to time, not wanting to torture their daughters, neither of whom could have dessert on a regular basis. They were stunned to see Payson slipping out of the guest room and a shirtless Sasha trailing just behind her. They'd watched in silence as Payson kissed her coach softly on the cheek, thanking him for Lord knows what. In that moment she was thrilled that she'd been in front of her husband because she was sure if he'd had a clear path towards Payson's coach, physical violence would have ensued.

When the true nature of what they were witnessed was revealed, confirmed just moments later when Payson told them why she'd sought out her coach in the middle of the night, despite how inappropriate it may appear, Kim felt nothing but gratitude for Sasha being there for her daughter, as he had so many times before.

Then just a day later, Payson had come storming inside the house, tears falling freely, but insisting that she didn't want to discuss whatever happened. At first she assumed it was just the situation finally overwhelming her, but then Sasha came in and explained that Max Spencer had paid them a visit and that whatever it was between he and Payson seemed to have ended.

It was a lot for anyone to take, let alone a teenaged girl, but then Payson had never been much like other teenaged girls. She didn't seem upset or angry, just _quiet_ and similar to a younger version of herself, stoic and focused.

She was extraordinarily curious what she and Sasha had discussed, how he'd managed to comfort her when Kim had no idea what to say to Payson, let alone how to broach either subject.

Mark stepped into the kitchen and she greeted him with a smile. "Did Sasha and Payson leave for the Rock already?" he asked, looking around the kitchen.

"We're about to," Sasha said from the archway, pulling on his jacket, Payson adjusting her gym bag on her shoulder. "See you there later."

The sound of the front door closing and the revving of Payson's car filled the air.

"How do you think she's doing?" Kim asked Mark, who shook his head.

"I don't know, Kim. She's a strong kid. If she can get through major back surgery and her comeback, this sort of pales in comparison, doesn't it?"

Kim shook her head at her husband. "You really don't think like a teenaged girl."

Mark snorted and shook his head. "Thank God for small miracles."

"I just can't believe Payson is okay training with Lauren. If it were me I would have wanted that little brat tossed out on her ear," Kim said, shaking her head.

"Me too," Mark said, taking a sip from his coffee, "but apparently we've raised someone who has more compassion than we do."

"Oh, honey you really aren't a teenaged girl." Mark frowned in confusion. "Payson isn't being compassionate by not demanding Lauren be thrown out. She wants Lauren to have to come to the Rock every day and see her and Sasha and think about what she did."

"Wow," Mark said, letting that revelation slide over him. "Is it bad I was impressed with the compassion, but maybe even more impressed with the real reason?"

Kim shook her head and laughed. "No," she said, with a shake of her head. "I'm a little impressed with it too."

The Rock was buzzing when Kim arrived. She caught sight of Payson working on the vault with Kelly Parker, the two girls working silently together. She also caught sight of a middle aged woman observing them from a chair against the wall.

"Good morning," she said, as she stepped into the office seeing Summer already at her desk. "Who's the woman on the floor with Kelly and Payson?" she asked, glancing back over her shoulder.

Summer looked up at her eyes wide, before she shook her head and smiled. "Teresa Alvarez, Kelly Parker's social worker."

"Her social worker?" Kim asked, feeling a little out of the loop.

"She's applied to become an emancipated minor, so the state assigned her a social worker to be sure she's in a stable environment before they give her access to the endorsement money she'd earned," Summer supplied, though Kim felt like she was holding something back.

"Ah," Kim said, putting down her purse.

"Look Kim," Summer began, her voice rising in pitch a little. "I just wanted to apologize to you for my part in trying to keep what happened with the training cam from Payson. I was just trying to protect both the girls and it wasn't my place, so I'm sorry."

Kim froze, not really understanding what Summer just said. She turned and faced her. "You knew? You knew that it was Lauren who sent that tape in and didn't tell me immediately?" she asked. "Wait, what are you talking about trying to keep it from Payson."

As she finished her barrage of questions, Sasha appeared at the doorway.

Summer looked at him, eyebrows furrowed and mouth pursed. "You didn't tell her?" she asked.

Sasha tilted his head and let out a small scoff. "No, when Payson and I told her, we kept it pretty straightforward. We thought you'd want to tell her yourself, since you're so dedicated to honesty and being forthright."

"Excuse me, I'm still in the room. What exactly didn't you tell me?" Kim asked, looking between the two younger people.

Sasha crossed his arms over his chest and smirked at Summer smugly. "I'll leave you to it then," he said, leaving the room and closing the door behind him.

Kim raised her eyebrows expectantly and Summer sighed.

"On Saturday, Lauren and Kaylie came to me and asked my opinion as to whether they should tell Payson that it was Lauren who sent the tape to Ellen Beals. I remembered what you said about not wanting to reopen that wound for Payson and so I agreed with the girls. I just didn't want to see anyone get hurt."

Kim stared at Summer, open mouthed. What happened to the woman who wanted to rip the heart out of whomever had stolen the tape and leaked it?

"I realize now that it was an error in judgment. My heart just ached for Lauren and Payson and I didn't want either of them to lose a friend. Their friendship and bond is so important to their careers..." she trailed off.

"Is that why you and Steve broke it off?" Kim asked, wondering exactly how long Summer had known. "You found out that it was Lauren?"

"He lied to me about it," Summer said. "He swore he'd never lie to me again."

Kim scoffed lightly, "And how exactly is Steve keeping it from you any different than you wanting to keep it from Payson or me apparently, since you obviously didn't come to me as soon as you found out."

"I wanted Lauren to come clean with Sasha first," Summer explained. "She needs to be held accountable for her actions, but I just, I didn't want her to lose her friend over an impulsive decision."

"An impulsive decision? That's what you're going to call this?" Kim asked, her anger simmering just beneath the surface.

"Yes, an impulsive decision made by a teenager. I just want what's best for Lauren."

Kim felt something snap at those words. Summer, who had no tangible connection to Lauren, other than having been engaged to her father, twice, was suddenly the judge and jury and believed herself capable of parenting, somehow involving herself in a situation that had very little to do with her.

She bit back most of her anger and very carefully said, "Do me a favor Summer, the next time you decide to do what's best for Lauren, leave my daughter the hell out of it."

* * *

><p>Kelly and Payson watched as Kim left the office marching down the stairs and out the door looking furious.<p>

"I guess Summer told my Mom," Payson mumbled as they stood at the water cooler, taking a break after they'd worked through their vault rotation.

"Told her what?" Kelly asked quietly.

Payson sighed and shook her head.

"Look I know something happened. You're furious with Kaylie and Lauren about something and it's not something stupid. I asked Austin, but he wouldn't tell me."

Payson looked at Kelly hard and the former National and World champion suddenly felt like a bug under a magnifying glass.

"The short version," Payson offered and Kelly nodded, grateful to be getting any version at all. "Lauren was the one who edited and sent the tape of me and Sasha to Ellen Beals. She told Kaylie and convinced her that they should keep it from me."

Kelly's jaw dropped. She hadn't expected that. She wasn't surprised at all with Lauren, but Kaylie shocked the hell out of her. This was the same girl who'd been furious with her for taking her journal and returning it. Yet somehow she was okay with Lauren taking the training footage and using it to nearly destroy their friend's career. The information soaked in quickly and despite turning over a new leaf, Kelly was nothing if not an opportunist. She saw an opening here. Payson was a potential friend and ally, someone who wouldn't flake like Kaylie had a tendency to do or stab you in the back _repeatedly_ like Lauren. "Wow, some friends," she said quietly.

Payson nodded. "I'm just sick of all this crap, all the drama."

"Yeah," Kelly agreed. "Look, I know we haven't always gotten along, but I think we've always had a mutual, I don't know...respect," she said, hoping she'd hit the right word. At Payson's nod, she continued. "I know it's not the same, but if you need a friend, I'm here."

Payson laughed lightly. "You and me, _friends_," she said, shaking her head. "Who have thought?"

Kelly nodded and rolled her eyes. "I know, right?"

* * *

><p>"I wonder what they're talking about?" Lauren mumbled to Kaylie as they stretched out on the floor. "And now they're laughing," she hissed.<p>

"So what?" Kaylie asked.

"Don't you get it," Lauren pressed, "they're going to make their own little 'World All-Around Medalist' clique and..."

"Lauren," Kaylie cut her off. "Payson's pretty mad at us, we both betrayed her. I'm glad she has someone to talk to."

"Or _someones_," Lauren said, raising her eyebrow meaningfully as Austin made his way over to the twosome and both girls smiled at his approach.

"They're all friends," Kaylie insisted.

Lauren shook her head, "But he's _your_ boyfriend. He should be on your side."

"Lauren," Sasha's voice echoed through the gym, completely cutting off Kaylie's response. "My office."

Lauren's stomach dropped and she could feel the bile rising in her throat. The only reason anyone ever got called to Sasha's office was to be chewed out for something.

"Have a seat," he said, nodding towards the desk opposite his as she entered the room.

He handed her a piece of paper with a bunch of chicken scratch across it. "What is this?" she asked, frowning, trying to make out the handwriting.

"That," he said, his mouth in a firm line, "is your new beam routine."

It al started to become clear as she looked at the margins where the skill difficulty levels were penciled in. She scanned down toward the bottom where a large number was written, underlined and circled. "A 7.2?" she asked, looking up at him. "That's..."

"That's the highest beam difficulty in the world as far as we know. Certainly higher than anything Genghi or Ivanka were doing in Rio," he finished for her.

"You really think I can do this?" she asked. The Olympics were less than a year away and most gymnasts didn't change a successful routine this close to the games.

"I am absolutely sure that you can. The real challenge will be trying to make it consistent before London. With the other girls, I've only tweaked their beam routines, but with you, it's a near overhaul."

Her mind flew to all the possibilities, "You know, Sasha, with a DOD this high on beam, it could make up for a lower bars score, if I could train a simple..."

Sasha frowned at her, "You don't think I considered all the possibilities for you as an all-around gymnast before I decided to cut it from your training?" he asked.

"It's just that..."

"I've done the math, Lauren. I did the math dozens of times. I know your capabilities and so do you," he said. "I thought you understood."

"I do," she said, "but I think..."

"Your job isn't to think, Lauren. Your all-around DOD wouldn't medal in this gym, let alone internationally. Two Americans will qualify for the all-around in London and if one of them was you, it would take a complete disaster from at least two of your teammates during qualifying and if you did qualify, your DOD wouldn't even be close to the top flight of international talent. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Sasha," she said, nodding.

"Good," he said, standing and she followed.

"I'm sorry," she added. "I trust you and I can't wait to get started on my new beam routine." Lauren stepped forward and hugged him and as her arms closed around his torso she felt him tense a little before patting her on the shoulder.

"Alright, go on," he said, as she pulled away. "Tell Tara I want you in the pit today working on the two and a half dismount."

Lauren turned and saw Summer standing in the doorway. She looked at Summer and smiled, before turning back towards Sasha. "Thanks," she said, smiling at him as she left.

She was just through the door when an idea, a brilliant idea, popped into her head. She knew she had a long way to go with Sasha in order to make up for what she did, but as she glanced back over her shoulder at two of the most important adults in her life, this could be a start.

* * *

><p>Austin watched Lauren climb the stairs to Sasha's office and then shook his head. He'd come over to Kelly and Payson with a mission and he was determined to see it through. "Payson, could we talk for a second?" he asked, nodding towards the doorway.<p>

"Yeah, I thought you might want to," she said quietly. "I'll be right back," she told Kelly who nodded, but furrowed her brow in curiosity.

Austin sighed as they stepped into the empty lobby. Max had come home the night before and been listless. He'd gone straight to bed after Austin had pried just a few tiny details out of him about his conversation with Payson.

"I'm assuming Max told you what happened?" she asked, as the moved around to the other side of the stairs, away from prying eyes.

"He told me you dumped him," he said, his tone serious, "he told me you dumped him after he told you about being bisexual."

Payson's eyes grew wide and then she looked away and laughed. "Wow," she said, "that's what he told you. That he told me he was bisexual and then I dumped him?"

"Yeah," Austin said, "and honestly I expected more from you Keeler. I didn't think you were closed minded, just a little inexperienced."

"I really don't need this right now," Payson said, crossing her arms over her chest and nearly pushing passed him.

"Wait, Payson," he said, grasping her arm. "Wait, I"m sorry. I just, I thought you really liked him and if you like someone all that other crap shouldn't matter, you know?"

She turned and looked up at him, "Austin, how long have we known each other?"

Austin racked his brain, trying to remember the first time he met Payson Keeler. "Three years," he said, finally. "We met at that party after Nationals in 2009."

"Right and you've trained here for almost a year now," she said.

"Your point?" he asked, wondering where she was going with this.

"In all that time have I ever lied to you?" she asked, raising a brow at him.

"No," he admitted.

She nodded. "I do like Max. I really like him. He's a great guy and a good friend. I'll admit, the bisexual thing caught me off guard, but it's more complicated than that."

Austin rolled his eyes. She was being such a typical girl, something he wasn't used to from Payson. "No it's not. You like him, he likes you, there's nothing complicated about that."

"Yes, there is," she insisted. "It's more complicated than that for _both _of us, but especially for Max and those complications don't really have anything to do with him being bisexual."

"Wow, vague much, Keeler?" he scoffed.

She shrugged. "It's not really my place to tell you. If he wanted you to know, he'd tell you himself."

He remained unconvinced, but Payson kept talking. "Neither one of us is in a place right now where we'd be able to handle a relationship, but that doesn't even matter because Max and I aren't right for each other, regardless and I'm sure if you tell him I said that, he'll probably agree."

Austin shook his head. "He just looked so destroyed..." he trailed off remembering how completely beaten Max looked when he came back to the house, face drawn, head down, shoulders slumped.

"I'm sorry if I hurt him, but he hurt me too," Payson said, her hard front finally cracking a little. "He lied, not just about being bisexual, but about a lot of things and I just..." she trailed off as well. "It hasn't been a great few days," she said finally, squaring her shoulders again, "so if this inquisition is over, I'd like to get back to training."

She pulled free from the hold he had on her arm and left him there.

"Payson," he called out and she turned to him, looking resigned to hearing whatever he had to say. "I'm sorry."

She exhaled lightly through her nose and looked away, before smiling faceticiously, "Yeah, everyone keeps saying that to me. I'm tired of apologies, Austin. I just need people I can trust. Are you one of those?"

"Yes," he said.

Payson nodded, "Okay then." She sighed. "I have to go train. I'll see you later."

"See you later," he said and watched her go. Austin rocked back on his heels and shook his head. Somehow in the space of twenty seconds, Payson Keeler had made him feel like a complete tool and when he got home he and Max were going to have a nice long chat about it.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, I was going apologize for how long this took, but then I realized it really hasn't been that long! ;-) Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Sadly, no shirtless Sasha this time, but I think he'll be back sooner rather than later. There are LOTS of storylines brewing, some obvious, some I've only hinted at. Review and tell me what you think!


	10. Chapter 10

Kaylie took a deep steadying breath before raising her clenched fist and knocking firmly on the door. She stepped back from it, crossing her arms over her chest, her eyes darting around, waiting for someone to answer. She'd put this off for too long. It was time to face the music.

"Kaylie," Kim Keeler said as she opened the door, the question obvious in her tone.

"Hi, Mrs. Keeler," she said sheepishly. "I uh...I just stopped by to..." she trailed off. Thankfully Payson's mom took pity on her and nodded.

"Come on in. Payson's in her room," she said, allowing her to slip into the front hallway.

"Thanks," she said, smiling slightly and heading towards Payson's room.

She hesitated in the hall for a moment when she heard a voice she recognized as Payson's dad, followed by a voice she didn't expect.

"Yes! What a blast by Mauer!" Mark Keeler called out in obvious joy. Kaylie could hear the roar of the crowd through the television speakers.

"So, it's like cricket only it doesn't last for days," Sasha's sharp English tones echoed from the living room.

"Exactly," Mark said.

Kaylie was about to make a sharp right and head into the living room to be sure she wasn't hearing thing when suddenly Payson appeared in her bedroom doorway. "Kaylie," she said, in obvious shock and confusion. "What are you doing here?" she asked.

She looked away from her friend and then met her gaze. "I came over to talk, well first to apologize and then to talk."

Payson nodded and turned around, leading her into the bedroom.

Kaylie shut the door behind them and watched Payson sit on her bed, crossing her legs and nodding towards the desk chair for Kaylie to take.

"I swear, Kay, I'm so sick of apologies. I feel like all anyone has been doing these last few days is apologize to me. You're sorry, I get it."

She sighed in relief and sat down. "I really am," she said, but then she saw the expression on Payson's face. The blonde world champion's mouth was set in a firm line and her eyes were narrowed.

"Yeah, sorry, blah, blah, blah, what I don't get, Kaylie is how could you do this? You of all people know how much it hurts to be lied to and what Lauren did, it was such a..." Payson trailed off for a moment, not finding the words, "a complete and total betrayal."

Kaylie shook her head. "I know, I just...I was trying to do what was best for our team. You remember how it is, as captain, you have to try and keep the team together and focused on the Olympics."

Payson scoffed and rolled her eyes. "You are such a terrible liar, Kaylie, I don't even know why you try it."

Kaylie blinked. Payson hadn't called her out on anything in a very long time, not since before her back surgery. That voice was the old Payson, the team leader and she felt herself responding to it immediately, despite herself. "That was how I rationalized it to myself," she admitted. "I had a session with Gene the other day and we talked it out. He thinks that maybe I was feeling some resentment towards you for winning at Worlds and then Sasha downgraded my Amanar to a double and I just...I fell into a bad habit. Instead of just being honest, I tried to control the situation."

"I guess I can understand that," Payson said, "and I'm sorry if you feel like I stole your spotlight. Everything's been happening so quickly and...and I feel like we've already had this conversation."

Kaylie snorted, "Except you had a legitimate reason to feel like something had been taken away from you. You broke your back, Pay. I just...I did this to myself and I'm working on it, I promise. You earned that title and your story, it's so inspirational, Payson. I'm your friend and I'm inspired by it. I just shouldn't have projected my own insecurities onto you and I should have been honest."

"You shouldn't have let Lauren manipulate you, you mean," Payson corrected, looking slightly more forgiving than she had moments before. "I'm pretty sure you didn't come up with the idea of keeping it from me on your own. That has Lauren Tanner written all over it."

"So I'm guessing that you won't be forgiving her any time soon," Kaylie ventured carefully.

"She nearly ruined my career and Sasha's life," Payson bit out. "So, no, Kaylie, I won't be forgiving her. I'll train with her and I'll be her teammate, but the friendship is over."

She really couldn't blame Payson. She knew what it felt like to be betrayed by a friend, but this was somehow deeper. This wasn't about a boy, Lauren's betrayal had nearly cost Payson her dream and practically labeled Sasha a creep of the worst kind. "I understand; what she did, it was awful. I just...she's my friend, Pay. Lauren and I have been friends for twelve years and..." Kaylie trailed off.

"I get it," Payson assured her. "I won't put you in the middle, Kaylie. I promise. I just..I can't. At Worlds, you heard all the whispers and people looking at me and Sasha like...I can't forgive that."

"Speaking of Sasha," Kaylie said, hopeful that she'd be able to steer the conversation away from all the crap of the last few days. "Is he here? I could have sworn I heard him watching baseball with your dad."

Payson nodded. "Yeah, the lease on his apartment was up and he can't move into his new place until Friday, so my mom offered him our guest room."

"Huh, that must be...weird," Kaylie said, not being able to find a word to adequately describe how strange it would be to live with their coach.

"It's fine," Payson shrugged. "He gets up early too, so we've gone running together a few times."

"Didn't you used to go running with someone else?" Kaylie hinted, not sure if Payson would be willing to talk about what happened with Max. Austin hadn't been all the forthcoming with the details. He'd just told her that Max and Payson weren't together anymore, though if they'd really been together in the first place was debatable.

"Maybe I did, but..." she trailed off. "There aren't a lot of Austin Tucker's out there, Kaylie, guys who are willing to support your dream without getting in the way of it. I thought maybe Max was one of them, but turns out not so much. He's got issues of his own to deal with and as much as I like him, I just...I can't..."

"So no double dates, then?" Kaylie asked.

Payson laughed a little. "No, no double dates."

Kaylie let it go. Payson wasn't exactly the sharing type when it came to stuff like this and she knew that's probably all she was going to get.

A knock at the door startled both of them and Kim Keeler stuck her head around the corner, "Kaylie, are you staying for dinner?" she asked.

Kaylie shook her head and smiled, "No thanks, Mrs. Keeler." She didn't have other plans, but the thought of sitting down at the table with the Keeler family and her coach was just a little too surreal. "I'll see you at the Rock tomorrow," she said.

Payson walked her to the door and they hugged before she left, though as she stepped back outside she felt that despite Payson's forgiveness that things would never be quite the same between them.

* * *

><p>Lauren smiled as Summer's car pulled into the driveway. She stood and raced down from the front door, pulling her gym bag over her shoulder.<p>

"Hey," she said, "thanks for giving me a ride. My car isn't out of the shop until next week and Kaylie has a doctor's appointment today."

Summer smiled. "I know," she reminded her. "You told me on the phone."

"Right," Lauren said, remembering that her excuses to ask Summer for a ride to the Rock were actually legitimate, especially being that her father was out of town and would be until the following day. She grimaced at that thought.

"Lauren," Summer asked, the concern obvious in her tone. "Is everything okay?"

Lauren sighed. Was everything okay? No, not really. One of her best friends hated her and probably would forever, the guy she liked chose the same best friend over her, her coach didn't trust her, she'd lost her dream of winning an Olympic All-Around title and she was the reason that Summer would never become her mother, officially anyway. "Yeah, I guess," she said, "I'm just sort of dreading telling my Dad about Sasha dropping uneven bars from my training."

"He did what?" Summer asked, clearly outraged on her behalf.

Lauren shook her head, not wanting Summer to be mad at Sasha, especially when she was trying to fix what she'd broken between them. "It's the right decision," she said. "The bars are easily my weakest event and the time I spend getting them just up to par is better spent training at a higher level on the other three events. Sasha thinks I have a real chance to beat out Genghi Cho and Ivanka on beam in London. I just know my Dad is going to be upset."

Summer nodded in understanding, but her frown remained locked in place. "Shouldn't Sasha had discussed this decision with your father first?"

She scoffed. "What does my Dad know about winning gold medals? Sasha knows what he's talking about and I trust him."

"Hmm," Summer said, still looking skeptical.

Lauren took that as her cue. "And speaking of Sasha, I just," she stopped and sighed. "I wanted to apologize to you. It was because of what I did that he left and I know how much you care about him and I can tell he still really cares about you, I can tell."

"Lauren..." Summer said, trailing off, the warning echoing through the word.

"What? He was so angry at you about the thing with Payson. Trust me, Summer, no guy gets that angry unless they really care about you. If he didn't care, it would have been indifference, not anger," Lauren argued. "And you can't deny that you still care about him. I know you do."

Summer sighed as they pulled into the Rock parking lot. "Lauren," she said, but Lauren just raised her eyebrows, daring Summer to contradict her. She'd been blind to it while she was trying her hardest to get her father back with Summer, but she realized now how stupid that was, when Summer clearly still had feelings for Sasha. In fact her silence now indicated that she _still_ cared about her coach more than she was willing to admit.

"You know I'm right," Lauren said. "And there's nothing stopping you now, so you should just go for it."

Lauren smiled at Summer's thoughtful expression and got out of the car, making her way into the gym, feeling like she'd done a good deed. She saw Kaylie stretching out on the floor, Payson and Kelly standing up, shaking out their limbs and heading towards the beam. Lauren having avoided Payson successfully since she'd confessed waited until they were out of ear shot and then made a beeline for Kaylie.

"Payson's talking to you?" she whispered in a hushed voice as she kneeled down, stretching out her wrists and arms first.

Kaylie looked up from her stretch. "I went over to her house yesterday and apologized for my part of it. She said she's forgiven me, but," Kaylie hesitated, "I don't think she'll ever really trust me again."

Lauren glanced over at Payson who was looking at Kelly with her brow furrowed in concern, the concern one friend would show for another. Lauren felt a pang in her chest, remembering the last time Payson had looked that way at her, just a few days before at the Spruce Juice. "Do you think..." she trailed off.

"Honestly, Lo," Kaylie said with a sigh, "I don't think so. She's still really angry."

Lauren sighed. "She knows it didn't have anything to do with her, right? I mean I didn't even think about it, I just...I just did it."

Kaylie bit her lip. "Yeah, I know and she knows that too. It's why she's so angry because you didn't think."

"Maybe I should apologize again," Lauren said with a frown. Apologizing generally worked well, once people realized how sorry you were, they tended to let their anger go, at least in Lauren's own experience that's how it worked. After all, she'd forgiven Payson when she went after Max, even _after_ she'd called dibs on him. How was this any different?

"I wouldn't," Kaylie said. "Payson's had a rough couple of days."

Lauren snorted. "Yeah, really rough, tons of money and free goodies from her sponsors after she won the all-around. I mean did you _see_ that car? And that watch she got from Longines? I saw that watch online and its like 4Gs."

"Lo, you know that stuff just comes with the territory and I don't mean that," Kaylie began, but stopped, biting her lip and looking around.

"Just spit it out, Kay," Lauren said, rolling her eyes.

"She broke up with Max," Kaylie whispered so quietly Lauren wasn't sure if she heard her right.

Lauren rolled her eyes. After all that, all the drama and the tears, Payson won, Max picked her and as soon as she had him, she dropped him? "You're kidding me?" she asked rhetorically. Kaylie's face remained stoic, confirming it. "She probably didn't know what to do with him once she had him," Lauren muttered under her breath.

"Ladies, are you finished stretching? I want to see your full floor routines before we break down any problem areas," Sasha's voice broke into their conversations, effectively cutting off whatever reproach Kaylie was about to deliver.

"We're ready," Lauren said, looking up at him with a smile as he stood just off the mat, clipboard in hand.

"Kaylie, you first," he said, jotting something down quickly.

Lauren glanced up at the gym office and saw Summer in the window rifling through some papers. She stood next to Sasha as he continued scribbling onto his clipboard and saw her opening as Kaylie moved towards the stereo to cue up her music.

"Summer gave me a ride to the Rock today," she began, not really knowing how else to broach the subject.

Sasha stopped writing and looked at her, brow furrowed. "That was nice of her," he mumbled, turning back towards the floor.

"Look, she mentioned something to me that I thought you should know," Lauren said, giving up on subtly as Kaylie moved toward the center of the floor to begin her routine. Sasha turned towards her and she took that as a good sign. "Summer still has feelings for you, _strong ones_, so if you were worried that she'd fallen out of love with you or whatever, don't."

"Lauren," Sasha said, shaking his head. "All of that is none of your business. You need to be concentrating on your gymnastics. That mount on beam is still happening only about fifty percent of the time and that's not good enough." He seemlessly moved the topic from his love life towards gymnastics and Lauren took the hint. He had the information he needed, he knew he wouldn't be rejected if he made his move. She'd done her job and now it was only a matter of time before one of the things she'd broken was fixed.

* * *

><p>Payson drained her cup of water and nodded for Kelly to continue. They'd been discussing Kelly's emancipation case on and off since they arrived at the gym, stopping and starting as they rotated through all four events before lunch.<p>

"Teresa said she's going to recommend to the court that I be allowed access to all my accounts and that I be granted a restraining order against my mother until my eighteenth birthday."

"A restraining order," Payson said. "Wow, isn't that a little extreme?"

"That's what I said. My mom's crazy, but not _dangerous_, but Teresa thinks it's necessary. I'm meeting her for lunch in," Kelly glanced up at the clock on the wall, "crap, in fifteen minutes. I've got to go change. See you later, Keeler."

"Bye, KP," Payson said, watching her friend disappear into the locker room. She looked up at the clock as well, seeing it was noon. It was about time for lunch, she thought, tossing her paper cup in the garbage and moving up the stairs towards the gym office to grab her bag from the mini fridge.

As soon as she turned the corner she knew she'd interrupted something. The tension was thick and growing with every second that ticked by as she looked at Sasha and then Summer, both glaring at the other, Summer frowning in that judgmental way she had, Sasha's jaw twitching in agitation.

"Sorry, I uh, I was just getting my lunch," she said, rabbiting across the room towards the fridge and grabbing the brown paper bag out of it.

"Lunch," Sasha repeated just before she made it out the door. "Sounds like a good idea." He followed her lead, grabbing a tupperware with leftovers from her mother's dinner the night before and let her lead him outside.

They walked in silence across the parking lot to the hilly patch of grass across the way, settling under a tree.

"Listen, I'm sorry about...well about whatever I walked in on, I didn't meant to intrude," Payson said.

"There wasn't anything to interrupt," Sasha said with a false lightness. She could see right through him, though she wasn't sure if he knew that. Regardless, she decided to simply change the subject.

"So do you have stuff?" Payson asked, pulling a napkin from her bag as he popped open the lid to the tupperware and spilled some sauce on his wrist. Their fingers brushed and she hoped that he couldn't feel the shiver that ran through her body at the smallest of touches.

"Stuff?" he repeated, obviously unsure what she meant.

"Yeah, stuff, like furniture, appliances, knives and forks, a bed, stuff..." she trailed off as her traitorous mind immediately conjured up a king sized bed and exactly what she would let him to do her on one if he'd allow it.

"No, I mean," he furrowed his brow, "crap, I'm moving in in two days and I don't have any stuff."

Payson laughed lightly. "It didn't occur to you?"

Sasha shook his head in disbelief. "The place I sub-let was furnished and I just didn't think about it."

She didn't even think about her next words, they just flowed out naturally. "We'll go shopping tonight then. There's an Ikea, a Pier 1 and a Target on Franklin Avenue, you should be able to get everything you need there."'

"This place smells like cleaning products," he murmured in her ear, as they walked down the main aisle of Ikea, browsing aimlessly, but accomplishing very little.

"Lots of cleaning products," Payson agreed, the smell of floor cleaner and lysol overpowering her senses..

"Can I help you two?" an attractive brunette in her late twenties asked, approaching them with a large smile. Payson watched her eyes flicker appreciatively over Sasha and she cleared her throat, drawing the woman's attention.

"We're looking for furniture," she said, as Sasha mindlessly ignored the woman, squinting at some sort of ceramic vase with an extremely ugly design painted on it. "Living room, bed room and a small dining set."

The woman, Cara, if her nametag was to be believed, shot Payson a sacchrine smile. "How nice, you're helping your brother shop for new furniture?" she asked, raising an eyebrow in a challenging sort of way.

Payson inwardly rolled her eyes, seeing the woman's game, but refusing to play it. She turned towards Sasha who was hovering just over her shoulder now, his front ghosting up against her back.

"She's not my sister," he said simply to the woman, moving away from both of them, his hand grazing against Payson's back as he approached a brown leather sofa, studying it for a moment. His words and the further clarification he left out hung in the air for a moment. He should have said, "She's not my sister. I'm her coach," or even, "I suppose we could be siblings, accents not withstanding," but instead he'd denied a familial relationship and then let the saleswoman draw her own conclusions and he had to know where her mind would jump, hell, where Payson's own mind jumped.

Cara looked at Payson appraisingly and when Payson met her gaze steadily, she looked away.

"What do you think?" Sasha asked, looking back over his shoulder at Payson, either oblivious to or deliberately ignoring the implication of his actions.

"Looks great," she said, glancing around and finding an arm chair that would go nicely with it. "And this too?"

"Perfect," he said, nodding towards the next section over, bedroom sets. They fell into step together, until Sasha stopped suddenly at a kind sized bed frame, dark wood, slatted head board. "What do you think?" he asked, looking down at her, running his fingertips lightly over the smooth surface.

It was impossible for his tone to be misinterpreted and Payson moved next to him, looking up into his eyes as he turned to face her. He wasn't just asking her opinion, she was sure of it, but she didn't know what he was asking exactly and she was nearly positive he didn't either.

"It's nice," she said, after she'd been silent long enough for the moment to grow more than a little charged. "I like it."

"Good," he said and then cleared his throat harshly. The noise was just enough to break the tension, but not enough to stop the butterflies dancing the tarantella in her stomach. "We'll take it; the chair and couch as well."

"Great, I'll go ring you up," Cara said, leaving them alone.

Payson exhaled through her mouth, looking anywhere but at the man beside her.

She heard his answering huff as well, "Payson," he began, but she cut him off.

"So what's next? We can head to Bed, Bath and Beyond and get whatever else you need," she said, looking up at him, a large smile plastered across her face, her eyes pleading with him to simply let it go.

His lips drew together in a firm line before he forced them into a grimace-like smile. "Sounds great," he said.

Payson's answering smile was no more genuine than his. "Yeah," she said, "great."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **I am SO sorry. I know it's been forever, but things have been a little crazy around here (it looks like there might be a cross country move in my immediate future) and not only that, but I swear I wrote this chapter fifteen different times, fifteen different ways and it just wasn't right. I'm still not 100% happy with it, but this is easily the best version of the endless versions I'd written. Let me know what you think! I need some love for this one, guys. It kicked my ass.

Also, taking the above information into account, I'm going to be VERY VERY VERY busy in the upcoming weeks/months. I've never abandoned a story and I don't plan on abandoning this one, but it looks like updates are going to be much more infrequent than is my usual style.


	11. Chapter 11

Lauren's eyes opened at six sharp. She still didn't know how she'd done it, but somehow she'd managed to train her body to be up and out of bed by this ungodly hour each morning. It was the only thing she hated about training. The physical and nutritional benefits didn't just keep her body on track for the Olympic podium, she knew she put most other girls in the world to shame. She was proud of her body, proud of how the male (and some female) eyes would follow her around the gym each day. She just never understood the benefits of starting the day when the sun was barely up.

She quickly pulled on her training gear and was just putting the finishing touches on the braid that would hold her bangs back from her face when she heard the distinct sound of her father's voice echoing through the hallways.

"Lauren, breakfast is ready," her father said, but the words were so incongruous with everything she knew about her father that she thought for a second she was hearing things.

She made her way down to the kitchen and let the confusion play across her face as she took in her dad standing at the stove, apron covering his dress shirt and slacks, spatula in hand, flipping what appeared to be pancakes.

"Since when do you cook?" she asked, taking a seat at the counter.

Steve turned around and frowned in mock affront. "I can cook. I simply choose not to anymore," he told her, lifting the skillet from the fire and sliding a second pancake into a plate before placing it in front of her.

"Pancakes?" she said, eyeing them carefully. It wasn't that she didn't appreciate the gesture, but flour and sugar weren't exactly high on the list of breakfast foods for an elite gymnast.

"Whole-wheat pancakes," her dad assured her, "with egg whites and just a tiny bit of sugar."

She smiled at him widely. "Thanks Daddy," she said, but then another thought crossed her mind. "What are you doing home? I thought you were coming back on Saturday?" Lauren watched the gamut of emotions run across her father's face, from the littlest bit of guilt towards something she hated, pity.

"Summer called me," he said, carefully. "She told me about Sasha's decision. I just want to let you know, sweetie, I'm going to bat for you on this one. There's no reason for you to stop training on bars. It's almost a year before the Olympics and a lot can happen between now and then."

Lauren shook her head, trying to make him stop, but it seemed he was just building up momentum.

"I brought him back to the Rock on the understanding that he would help all you girls fulfill your dreams and if he thinks he can just walk back in and start dictating..."

"Daddy," she finally interrupted and Steve stopped, looking at her dead in the eye. "I wish Summer hadn't called you." Apparently she had a lot more work to do in that department if Summer wasn't siding with Sasha even when Lauren agreed with him.

"She was right to call me," Steve began again, but Lauren cut him off.

"No, she wasn't. I'm okay about the bars. It sucks, I guess, but it's the right move for me at this point, especially after the upgrades I made on beam."

Steve's outrage seemed to cool and Lauren smiled at him. "Upgrades?" he asked.

"I'll be heading to London with a 7.2 start value on beam, the highest in the world," Lauren said proudly. "Higher than Genghi and Ivanka by two tenths of a point."

Lauren could feel her father studying her, obviously searching her expression for truth, wanting to be sure she was happy, that the upgrades on beam truly made up for the loss of the uneven bars. "That's awesome, honey," he said finally. "You're going to win gold in London."

"Was there ever any doubt?" Lauren said, smiling widely before taking a bite of the pancakes her father made her.

She arrived at the gym energized just a half hour later, ready to put together her routine for the first time after nearly a week of isolating the skills and perfecting them. She pulled into her spot, noting that there were only a few cars already there, most notably Payson's new Audi.

Her stomach sank for a moment before she took a deep breath and decided that she would try and apologize to Payson again. The gym would be nearly empty and it had been almost a week since she'd come clean. That should be enough time for her level headed friend to have calmed down and perhaps be ready to forgive her.

She pushed through the glass doors and onto the gym floor. Payson was already up on the beam and her jaw dropped as she watched her friend tumble from one end to the other, a round off, flic-flac, arabian double front off the end of the beam, more than a small upgrade from the double pike she'd done at Worlds and more difficult than the double flic-flac two and a half twist he'd just added to her own routine.

Lauren racked her brain trying to remember what Payson's degree of difficulty on beam had been at Worlds, but it hadn't been he focus at the time, Payson wasn't a threat on the beam event finals; she hadn't even considered the idea, until now. Was this what Sasha meant when he said he'd tweaked the other girls' beam routines? This was more than a tweak.

"Excellent job, Payson," she heard Sasha's voice say as Payson's arms came down from her salute to imaginary judges. "Get some water, the other girls should be arriving soon."

Lauren cleared her throat and both Sasha and Payson looked towards the door. Payson's eyes narrowed and she looked away immediately before moving towards the water cooler. Sasha managed a small smile, as he moved in her direction.

"Good morning, Lauren," he said, his eyes darting back towards Payson for a moment.

"Morning, Sasha," she said, and returned the smile. "I was wondering," she continued, lowering her voice, "could you give me a minute with Payson."

"Lauren," Sasha said, caution in his tone. "I'm not sure if that's a good..."

"It's fine," Payson cut in, leaning up against the office platform.

Sasha turned away from Lauren fully and crossed his arms over his chest, making eye contact with Payson. Lauren watched as they somehow communicated silently. She saw Sasha's shoulders lower and his eyes soften when Payson nodded reassuringly and her mind flickered back to that moment last week, when she saw Sasha's thumb caressing the back of Payson's neck.

Payson's voice suddenly brought her back to the present. "You wanted to talk," she said, as Sasha slid the office door closed behind him. "Talk."

Lauren looked at her friend and nodded, a lump suddenly growing in her throat, unbidden, though she supposed tears couldn't hurt. "That was an awesome dismount," she said, not being able to let that go quite so easily. "Harder than mine."

Payson shrugged. "I can't add the power moves I want into the routine itself, but in isolation, like the dismount, it's easier to get my DOD up."

"What's the -"

"Seven on the dot," Payson cut her off, giving in to her curiosity and Lauren felt her stomach clench. Just two-tenths lower than hers. Easily in striking distance for an event final and now suddenly another threat where there hadn't been one before. "You wanted to talk to me about my beam DOD?" she asked, taking a sip from her water bottle.

"No," Lauren assured her and Payson rolled her eyes, obviously growing tired of Lauren's stalling. "I wanted to apologize to you again. I know what I did was wrong and I'm so sorry."

Payson was silent for a moment and then she smiled. Lauren blinked in confusion. "You're sorry," Payson said, looking up at the Rock's vaulted ceilings and then back to Lauren. "You're sorry you did something wrong. You're sorry you got caught. You're sorry that Summer made you confess to Sasha. You're sorry that Sasha made you apologize to me. You're not sorry you did it. You're not sorry you nearly ruined Sasha's life. You're not sorry you nearly ended my career. You're not sorry for every minute you teased me about Sasha, about liking middle aged men or him being my _boyfriend_. You're also not sorry for accusing Kaylie of leaking the footage when she was suffering from a life threatening disease. I'm done with your crap..."

Lauren opened her mouth, trying to defend herself, but Payson was only just finding her voice.

"...and I am done with your apologies, Lauren. You're my teammate. You're an amazing gymnast and I'll be happy to share that team podium with you in London. But no matter how many times you apologize it's not going to make what you did better. Nothing will make it better." Payson said all of this with a straight face, no indication of anger or that she was upset at all. It was more than a little annoying as Lauren fought to contain her tears.

"Sasha forgave me," Lauren said, choking back another sob. "He said it's something every champion has, a short memory."

Payson scoffed. "I have a short memory," she said, "in fact in a minute, as soon as I get on those bars," she said, nodding towards the apparatus just to her left, "I'll have forgotten all about it."

* * *

><p>Payson frowned at herself as Lauren moved away from her, stunned into silence by her last dig. She'd been crueler than she intended when she pointed out the bars, but she was still angry at Lauren, the betrayal was still very much a fresh wound and she needed to end the conversation before the tears began to fall again. She was done crying over it and now she just wanted to move on.<p>

"Remind me never to get on your bad side, Keeler," Kelly's voice murmured behind her as she moved towards the chalk bowl.

Payson turned and grimaced at Kelly. "Don't worry, KP. I know you're more of a stab you in the chest kind of girl," she joked.

"Moi?" Kelly said, pointing to herself, her eyelashes fluttering innocently.

They both laughed lightly. "I have to warm up, some of us don't get here before the sun actually rises, but I wanted to invite you to a party tonight."

"A party?" Payson said, frowning, not in disapproval, but in confusion. "What are we celebrating?"

Kelly smiled widely. "I got a phone call from my case worker, as of this morning I am officially recognized as an emancipated minor."

"That's great!" Payson said, giving in to the sudden urge to hug Kelly.

Kelly laughed and embraced her back. "Yeah, so Austin decided this morning that because Sasha gave us the weekend off, he was going to throw a party anyway, so why not make it an Independence Day party?"

Payson snorted. Austin never needed an excuse to have a party, but he loved having themed parties. "An Independence Day party?"

"Summer attire, despite it being November," Kelly explained, rolling her eyes. "He's brining in massive space heaters and his hot tub is up and running, so bring a suit if you want."

"I don't think I'll be getting in that petri dish," Payson said, with a smile. "But I'll be there."

Kelly nodded. "Just so you know, Kaylie is going to..."

"Invite Lauren," Payson finished for her. "Don't worry about it, Kelly. It sounds like fun and it's not like we have training tomorrow." Her eyes flickered up towards the gym office where Sasha was standing in the window, flipping through some paperwork before running a hand through his hair.

It would do her good to get out of the house, get away from the constant frisson that had only increased in the last few days between her and her coach. Ever since that moment in the store, everything was just magnified, eye contact sent shivers down her spine, physical contact had her trembling, just the sound of his voice made her stomach flip. And now that she knew he was aware of it, she almost resented the feeling. She didn't have the courage to ask him whether he was as affected as she was. She thought perhaps that he was, but she couldn't trust her read on the situation. She would leave it up to him to acknowledge what was happening and if he remained silent, so much the better. Though it was entirely possible she might explode from his hand brushing against the small of her back or his breath ghosting over the top of her head before he ever uttered a word about it.

Training seemed to fly after that, mostly because Payson always had a little bit of social anxiety when it came to attending parties. Maybe some girls could go home, know exactly which dress in their closet of dresses they wanted to wear and look flawless without much thought, but not her. As she drove home or rather as Sasha drove her home, his attachment to her car growing by the day, she mentally ran through her wardrobe options.

"You're awfully quiet," Sasha commented as they pulled down her street. "Any big plans for tonight," he said and she could hear the teasing in his voice.

"Yes, actually," she said, smirking at him for being a smart ass about her social life or lack there of. "Austin is throwing a party for Kelly, to celebrating the state granting her emancipation petition, so I'll be headed over there."

"Austin's throwing a party?" Sasha repeated back to her, his brow furrowed as he turned into her driveway. "And you're going?"

"Yes, I am," she said, grabbing her gym bag from the floor of the car. "Don't wait up," she said, not being able to help the saucy tone of voice or the sway of her hips as she left him in the car, likely gaping at her in shock.

A few hours later as she wandered aimlessly around Austin's lake house, cup in hand, though filled with nothing stronger than gingerale and wondering why exactly people found parties like this fun. Her eyes drifted towards the crowded living room converted for the night into a dance floor. She had no desire to dance with some random guy, if you could call what they were doing dancing. Really, what it looked like where people trying to screw each other standing up through their clothes, though a few of the girls in attendance had clearly shown up in something resembling underwear.

She looked down at her own dress, a pretty floral sundress she'd purchased over the summer and shook her head. This just wasn't her scene, no matter how much she wanted it to be.

Her eyes scanned the party one more time and this time found a familiar face in the crowd. Max Spencer was on the dance floor, pressed up against one of the girls who'd clearly considered clothing optional. Somehow she wasn't surprised when she looked closer and saw the girl was Lauren.

Payson snorted to herself and made her way through the crowd and outside towards her car. She laughed to herself when she stepped out onto the driveway and saw her car blocked in by seven or eight other cars. The party was still raging inside and showed no signs of slowing down any time soon. She glanced at her phone and frowned at the time. It was late. She didn't want to call her parents to come get her at this time of night and all of her friends were here and in no condition to drive her home.

She bit her lip and took a deep breath before shooting off a text to the one other person she could think of who'd be able to come get her at this hour.

She sat down on the brick ledge that lined Austin's property and waited.

"Hey pretty girl," a voice, slightly slurred, called out from just behind her.

She turned and saw a guy, probably not much older than her walking down the driveway. He was good looking, short brown hair, strong jawline and tall, probably six feet or a little more.

"Hi," she said shortly as he leaned up against the other ledge, pulling a pack of cigarettes from his jacket pocket and lighting one. He offered the pack to her and she shook her head. "No thanks, I don't smoke."

He shrugged. "Good for you, these things'll kill you."

"That's what it says on the label," she said, smirking at him and he laughed.

"You a friend of Austin's?" he asked, taking a drag of his cigarette and considerately exhaling away from her.

"We train together," she said, rubbing her hands up and down her arms as a breeze kicked up. There was only one space heater at the end of the driveway and the autumn air swirled around them.

"You're a gymnast then?" he asked and she nodded. "Very cool. I'm Scott by the way. Scott Lago."

"Payson Keeler," she said, trying to place his name, knowing she'd heard it before.

"So Payson Keeler, what are you doing out here when the party is back there?"

"Waiting for my ride," she said simply and a small smile slipped onto her expression as she heard the growl of a motorcycle from down the street.

"That your ride?" he asked as Sasha's bike pulled into view.

Her smiled widened as she took him in, sitting casually astride the machine, leather jacket and boots, well worn jeans, his sandy blond hair looking a little windblown. "Yep," she said, her smile turning almost apologetic.

Scott laughed a little. "Figures," he said, flicking his cigarette to the ground and stomping it out. "Nice to meet you, Payson."

She hopped off the ledge and smiled almost apologetically over her shoulder. "You too," she said before jogging lightly to the street where Sasha held out a helmet for her. She slid in behind him, tucking her dress in around her thighs, hoping it wouldn't come loose as they drove. She clicked the strap beneath her chin.

"Who's that?" he asked, eyeing the young man who was still standing at the gate to Austin's driveway, watching them.

"No one," she said, wrapping her arms around his waist, feeling him tense for a moment before they both relaxed into the embrace. "Thank you for coming to get me," she said simply.

"Always," he said simply before revving the engine, perhaps louder than necessary and taking off down the street. Despite her best efforts, her dress fluttered around her thighs as they sped off into the night.

* * *

><p>Austin woke up feeling better than he usually did the night after one of his parties. He'd made it a point to remain sober the night before since this was his first party with Kaylie around, at least <em>officially<em> speaking. He knew she'd had a good time, at least the way she'd kissed him just before she left made him think so.

He made his way downstairs and was pleasantly surprised to find the kitchen nearly spotless. He was also really enjoying the delicious scents eminating from the stove.

"You cook?" he asked Kelly as she moved around the kitchen like a pro, slipping by him and grabbing plates.

"I like cooking shows," she said, using the spatula to move scrambled eggs from the pan to the plates she'd laid out. Austin frowned though when he counted the number of plates.

"There's only going to be three of us, KP," he said, hovering over her shoulder and grabbing some bacon from the pan.

She snorted a laugh and slapped playfully at his hand. "No, there's definitely four," she said.

"Kaylie didn't..." he said, knowing for sure that he'd woken up alone.

"I know, loverboy," Kelly said. "I was there when you practically molested each other at the front door."

"Then who..." he trailed off.

"Good morning," a voice called out, a voice he never, ever wanted to hear this early in the morning, especially in his own house.

He turned and saw Lauren and Max trudging into the kitchen. Max in his usual boxers and tee-shirt and Lauren wearing similar, obviously borrowed attire.

"Morning," he said, eyeing Max incredulously. His friend simply shrugged and blearily wiped at his eyes before sitting down at the table. Austin turned to Kelly who was digging through his fridge.

She turned, coming up with a bottle of champagne left over from the night before and some orange juice. "Mimosa?" she asked.

Austin pinched at the bridge of his nose as both Lauren and Max began helping themselves to the breakfast Kelly made. "Absolutely," he said, grabbing some glasses. He was going to need a drink or ten to get through this morning.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **So the last couple of weeks have been more than a little crazy. So I'm NOT moving across the country, so things aren't going to be nearly as busy in the next few months as I thought they would be. However, this chapter just didn't want to get written. There were a couple of different ways I wanted to go with it and I ended up scrapping all of them and going in this direction. Hope you all enjoyed it. I've been working on a way to get Payson on the back of that motorcycle for a while now. Hope you enjoyed it. Next time we get to jump into Mark Keeler's head a little bit, which is always fun! Let me know what you think, even if it's just to yell at me for taking so long!


	12. Chapter 12

There wasn't anything special about the flat Sasha leased. His only real requirement when looking for a place was that he was relatively close to the Rock, he did after all like a short commute, though he'd studiously avoided areas usually occupied by CU Boulder students as well. That had forced him to raise his budget a smidgen, but it wasn't anything all that money rotting away in long forgotten bank accounts from his days as an international athletic super star couldn't pay for.

Mostly he was simply relieved to be moving in. During his week at the Keeler home he'd found himself getting just a little too comfortable and it had little to do with Kim's cooking or that she did his laundry despite his protests. No, the comfort came from simply occupying the same space with the eldest Keeler daughter. The morning runs, the teasing quips over dinner, cozy evenings watching a film, brushing by each other in the slightly too small hallways. His feelings at the start of the week were a tumult of emotion that he wouldn't have been able to define if his life depended on it. Now, as her family helped him move into his new apartment, he knew exactly what to call the ache he felt in his chest whenever she was near him. It wasn't mere affection or even that certain kind of love he'd told her about between a coach and an athlete, the relationship he and Nicolai had shared. It wasn't a simple physical attraction, though that was certainly part of it, a large part of it, if he were being totally honest with himself. He hadn't yet allowed himself to think the words, but he knew what he felt and it terrified him.

"Sasha?" her voice jolted him out of his reverie. Payson was standing in the doorway to the master bedroom, a large floor lamp in her grasp. "Sasha?" she asked again, unsure she'd gained his attention.

His eyes snapped to hers and she smiled lightly at his inattention. "Where did you want this?"

"Oh, um," he hesitated, not having any idea where he wanted it. She strode into the bedroom, completely uninhibited by the idea and he followed. "Is there an outlet next to the dresser?" he asked.

"Bingo," she said, placing the lamp down in the far corner of the room and getting down on her hands and knees to plug it in to the outlet just behind his dresser.

He nearly groaned aloud at the picture she presented him, her ragged jeans hugging tightly around curves no seventeen year old gymnast should be allowed to possess, her shirt riding up just a bit as she reached behind the large dresser, exposing her lower back, the smooth patch of skin taunting him. The quickening of his pulse reminded him of the night before. He'd just been settling into bed when the text message brought his phone to life. His mind whirled in that moment. Why hadn't she called her parents? Was it her first instinct to call him? Was she in some kind of trouble? What happened to her car? His thoughts were still swirling at a hundred miles per hour when he realized he'd gotten dressed and was already on the driveway starting up his bike.

He'd had the presence of mind to bring a helmet with him, though wearing one wasn't a habit of his, but the entire ride to Austin's lake house, the thought of the physical consequences of giving her a ride home never entered his mind, not until she was jogging lightly towards him, her pretty floral dress swirling around her thighs, her blonde curls bounding over her shoulders, did he think about how she'd be pressed against him for the ten minute drive back to the Keeler house. Then she was there, her body moulding against his, the soft curve of her chest pressing into his back, her warmth burning through the leather of his jacket.

He caught sight of a young man standing in Austin's driveway watching them. The possessiveness that cursed through his veins in that moment was all consuming. Then her hands slid around him, holding on tightly, preparing for the ride and at once, all of his senses focused on her. She was wrapped around him out of necessity, her legs and arms keeping her on the bike, but he wanted her wrapped around him in an entirely different way, bare limbs tangled together against cool sheets, his mouth tasting the sweet saltiness of her skin. He was sure that she could feel his heart pounding against his ribcage, the staccato beat the only outward indication of his innermost thoughts. He wondered if she was affected at all, though he thought perhaps her breath was slightly shallow and a little ragged against the nape of his neck.

They rode back to the house in silence and she thanked him again, this time quietly on the front porch before they went into the house. In that moment it had taken all of his strength not to grab her by her shoulders, foolishly left bare in the chilly November air, brace her against the solid oak door and kiss her into submission, though he doubted very much she wouldn't give as good as she got.

"Sasha?" her voice cut into his thoughts again and he shook his head, trying to clear it, though it was nearly useless with her standing just in front of him, hair an attractive mess, her tee shirt and jeans just as appealing as that dress from the night before, though he imagined he would think she was beautiful covered in dirt, dressed in a burlap sack. Her laughter brought him back this time.

"Sorry, did you say something?" he asked, trying to focus on the room. It seemed like everything he'd purchased was moved-in.

"Just wondering where you went," Payson said, hands coming to rest against her hips, a honey colored brow rising in question.

He smiled tightly, saying the first thing that came to mind. "Just thinking about what we should order for lunch. Feeding you all is the least I can do for all your help today," he said as they both moved towards the door.

"Ruggerio's," Payson said, letting her eyes roll back in exaggerated pleasure. "Their whole-wheat pasta actually tastes like the real thing and," her words were cut off as she was suddenly thrown off balance, stumbling forward towards the wall. Sasha, with the quick reflexes of an elite athlete, managed to react immediately, throwing his arm out to catch her before she collided with the wall face first. He spun them around, his back pressed into the spot her head would have knocked into, his back pressing into the light switch and flicking it off, unintentionally bathing them in darkness.

For a moment the only sound in the room was their breathing, harsh and slightly ragged as the small adrenaline spike wore down for the both of them.

His vision, did not immediately adjust to the dark room, so his other senses were suddenly magnified. The scent of her coconut shampoo wafted up towards his nose, the press of her cheek against the soft fabric of his shirt, her hands gripping his forearms, no longer needing his help to balance, but remaining there nonetheless. Then his vision cleared and he blinked, before looking down to meet the greenish-grey eyes staring up at him. He held her gaze for a moment and then another, a small part of him wished something, anything, would break this connection they were forging, but the rest of him relished it. It was that same instinct holding on to the energy they created that urged his mouth downward. He felt her fingers curl into the fabric of his shirt, as their breaths mingled. He saw her eyes flicker closed as he drew closer, their noses brushed, her soft cheek pressed into his, sending a shiver down his spine; then just as he was about to slant his mouth over hers, a thud from beyond the door broke the moment.

"Damn it," Becca's voice echoed through the apartment.

"Don't say damn," Kim scolded lightly, but then her tone turned serious. "Are you okay, Becca?"

They pulled back together, though he didn't have the heart to release her, after all this might be the only moment he had to hold her in this way. It seemed she was of the same mind and she simply remained in his arms for a moment before they matched sighs of regret and stepped away. Sasha shifted against the wall and hit the light switch again, the floor lamp they'd just plugged in filling the room with light. He saw what she'd tripped over, a thick empty plastic bag from the sheets set they'd bought just a few days before and were now tucked beneath his new duvet cover.

Without looking at him, Payson slid from his embrace and slipped from the room. He heard her inquiring about her sister who'd apparently dropped a box of books onto her foot, but was alright. He took a moment to compose himself, running a hand through his hair and making sure his breath was unsuspiciously even, before moving into the living room as well to assess the damage both to Becca's foot and to his relationship with his star gymnast, whom he was desperately in love with, there was no denying that now.

* * *

><p>Payson was happy and though he'd been less adept at understanding her in the last year or so, Mark Keeler knew at least that. He knew Kim was worried about her, fretting over the split with Max and the standoff with Lauren Tanner, but Mark knew better. Payson was very much like him, always had been since she was a tiny little thing. Mostly quiet and reserved, but willing to put herself out there for the things she cared about and because of those similarities she generally wasn't able to hide how she was feeling from him.<p>

Despite all the dramatics that seemed to be swirling around his oldest daughter in the last few weeks, he could tell she was happy. Every once in a while her eyes would light up, usually when someone alluded to her victory in Rio. It was everything she'd ever worked for and though every day life hadn't changed all that much for her, he knew how proud she was to have won the all-around, proving once and for all that she was back.

That wasn't the only thing making her happy however and that's what concerned Mark the most. A week with Sasha Belov in his home and he saw first hand the kind of connection Payson had with her coach, a man he once accused, if not outright, of having an inappropriate relationship with her. Kim and Payson had tried to bring him around on the issue. He'd mostly agreed with them at the time, but a week after living in the same house with both of them, his fatherly instincts were most definitely on high alert.

His eyes caught sight of them in Sasha's tiny kitchen, working together, dividing up the food they'd ordered from Ruggerio's, setting out plates, utensils, and glasses. He could feel the tension between them and it was more than a little disconcerting. It wasn't a negative sort of tension; just the opposite, it seemed as if one was a magnet for the other. They constantly moved near each other, hands colliding, reaching around or over.

Sasha Belov concerned him in a way Max Spencer never would or could. He knew his daughter well. Max was a good kid, but he was just that, a kid. A kid was something Payson hadn't been in a long time and maybe there hadn't been anything to worry about a month ago, but from the looks of things, there certainly was now. He knew when Payson wanted something, she went after it and there would be no stopping her.

"Dad," Payson's voice rang in his head and he shook himself from his thoughts. "Do you want diet coke?" she asked, holding up a can.

"Hmm?" he asked, though he was just stalling a bit. "Oh, yeah, diet coke is fine," he said, standing up from his seat on the couch and moving towards the kitchen.

"Meatball sub and a diet coke," she said, putting a plate in front of him with a smile.

"Payson, you still haven't told us how Austin's party was," Becca called from her seat, foot elevated on a stool, a bag of ice balancing precariously over her bruise.

Mark's eyes narrowed as Payson froze, her eyes darting towards Sasha quickly before she shrugged and plastered a tight smile on her face. "I met Scott Lago, the Olympic snowboarder, though I didn't recognize him at the time."

"Cool," Becca said, digging into her meal.

"What time did you get home? I didn't hear you come in," Mark pressed, knowing she hadn't been out all that late, but late enough since he'd fallen asleep.

"Oh, I don't know, around midnight I guess. I didn't want to wake you guys," she said, casually enough, but Mark wasn't looking at her, he was looking at Sasha who was leaning against the counter, his eyes fixed on Payson.

"Didn't you have a good time, honey?" Kim asked, a frown spreading across her expression. He knew his wife wanted Payson to have as normal an adolescence as possible and having fun at parties was a part of that, but Payson wasn't normal. She was exceptional.

"It was fine, I guess. Not really my scene," she said with another shrug of her shoulders. "Apparently lots of girls took the idea of Independence Day and ran with it. Lots of bikinis and barely there dresses. I looked a little out of place," she admitted.

"You looked beautiful," Sasha said approaching the counter and taking his food. Mark's eyes moved immediately from his daughter towards the younger man, who now had four pairs of eyes upon him. Sasha raised his eyebrows at all of them. "What?" he asked, shrugging his shoulders. "She did and I'm sure Scott Lago thought so too," he suggested and Mark watched as color invaded Payson's cheeks lightly. He'd never seen Payson blush before.

"Yes, you did," Kim agreed, either not sensing or ignoring the connection Mark felt building in the air. "I love that dress and I'm glad you wore it."

"Thanks," Payson said, smiling at Kim, but as everyone else went back to their food, Mark watched as her eyes darted towards Sasha, sending a small smile to him as well. The young man's usual stoicism broke for a moment and he smiled in return.

"Sasha, I think my foot's bad enough that I'll have to sit out conditioning on Monday," Becca broke into the silence, looking positively gleeful at the idea.

Sasha, Kim and Payson all laughed, as Sasha agreed with her assessment.

Mark was eternally grateful for the conversation, because if he had to watch anyone look at his daughter that way for an extended period of time and watch her look right back, he might have been convinced that his teenaged daughter and her coach were in love and that there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

* * *

><p>"I have a bad feeling about this," Austin said, frowning a little both at the situation he was currently in and that no one laughed at his bad Star Wars reference.<p>

"It might be fun," Kelly said, obviously trying to be helpful.

"You could come with us, KP," Kaylie suggested, checking the picnic basket again, to be sure they had everything they'd need.

Kelly snorted and Austin rolled his eyes at her. "Absolutely not. I'm not playing fifth wheel on this train wreck waiting to happen. I have way too many self preservation instincts."

Kaylie frowned, "But you just said..."

"I was being sarcastic, Kaylie. This is a really bad idea and you were crazy for going along with it."

"It's just a picnic at Chautauqua Park. What could possibly go wrong?"

"Famous last words," Austin said, Kelly's voice matching his and they both laughed.

"Laugh it up, you two, but Max and Lauren are our friends and they're together now, so I think we should be supportive."

"Support away," Kelly said, grabbing her self a bottle of water from the fridge. "Just don't expect too much from them. They hooked up at a party after they had too much to drink and now suddenly they're steadies like five minutes after Payson dumped him? I don't buy it." She left the kitchen and Kaylie huffed at her retreating back, but Austin couldn't help but agree, silently of course.

"What do you think?" Kaylie asked, rounding on him, but he was saved by the ringing of his cell phone.

He grinned when he saw who was calling, Scotty Lago. Maybe he wanted to go boarding and he'd be able to worm his way out of this disaster of a double date.

"Hey bro," he asked. Kaylie rolled her eyes at his victorious grin.

"Austin, great party last night, man. Independence Day, genius."

"Thanks," he continued as Kaylie began to busy herself with making sure they had everything. "What's up?"

There was a brief hesitation on the other line before Scotty continued. "Met a girl last night at your place, blonde, leggy, hot as hell -"

Austin snorted. "There were a lot of those around, man, you're going to have to be more specific than..."

"She said she trains with you, but I can't remember her name. I think she's got a boyfriend or something, but I wanted to call you and see if you knew for sure. Patsy or Peyton..."

"Payson Keeler," Austin supplied for him. "You and Payson met at the party last night." Kaylie stopped dead in her tracks and looked at him, a million questions running across her face.

"Yeah, man and I can't stop thinking about her, there was just something...I don't know, special..."

Austin huffed out a breath, wondering what it was about Payson Keeler that attracted his friends like flies to honey. "Yeah, I get you, but look man, I don't know if that's the best idea, she's..."

"So she's with the guy on the motorcycle, the one that picked her up?" He could hear the dejection in Scotty's voice.

"What guy?" Austin asked, wracking his brain trying to remember if he saw who Payson left with last night and then his protective instincts were trying to figure out why she left with anyone at all.

"The blond guy with the old school Norton bike. Leather jacket, looked a little rough around the edges. I figured he was her boyfriend, but then I thought maybe..."

The gears in his head slowed from overdrive as Scotty described Sasha Belov to him, though why their coach was picking her up from his house was another mystery entirely. He looked toward Kaylie and thought about running it passed her, but thought better of it. Then Scotty's voice was calling his name over the line, obviously wondering if the call had dropped. "Nah, man, she's single. Sorta newly single though. You know what let me make sure it's cool with her and if it is I'll give you her number."

"Who wants Payson's number?" Kaylie asked as soon as he ended the call.

"Friend of mine, Scotty Lago," Austin said. "They met at the party last night."

"Who met Scotty at the party last night?" Max asked, as he and Lauren stepped in the kitchen.

It was rare Austin was rendered speechless, but he had no idea if he should say anything at all. He looked to Kaylie for help, but she was just as wide eyed as he felt. "Oh, um, no one?" he said, weakly and then rolled his eyes at himself. What the hell did he care if it was awkward? Lauren and Max shot him clearly disbelieving looks, but he was grateful nonetheless when Kaylie answered for him.

"Scotty met some girl last night at the party and wanted her number," she said simply. "Are we all ready to go? We're burning daylight and this is going to be one of the last warm days this year, we should take advantage of it."

Austin suddenly realized just how good Kaylie was at deflecting and people pleasing. It was the part of her personality that led to her anorexia, wanting other people's acceptance and happiness, mostly in the place of her own. It wasn't something he should let her get away with, but in the moment he didn't feel like having yet another argument about her recovery, especially not over Payson's love life.

He smiled at the other couple both of whom looked confused at the tension suddenly swirling in the room. "Let's go," he said, grabbing the basket Kaylie packed. "You driving?" he asked Max who had the only car that would do well on Chautauqua Park's sometimes suspect pavement.

"Yeah," Max said quickly, grabbing his keys, obviously as willing to let it go as Austin and Kaylie were, though judging by the furious whispering going on between Kaylie and Lauren behind him, the subject hadn't been dropped at all.

It was only a few minutes drive to Chautauqua Park, but Lauren managed to fill that drive with more words than he usually uttered in an average day. Her topics of choice ranged from her upgraded beam routine, a topic Kaylie of all people hadn't encouraged, but would have been the most bearable, to the results of her newest shopping escapade, to how much fun she'd had the night before, suggestion dripping from each syllable. By the time they'd laid out the blanket on a pretty piece of grass near the basketball courts, Austin had enough.

Lauren was Kaylie's friend. If she wanted to spend time with her, great, but he shouldn't have to suffer the consequences of it.

"First to twenty-one?" he asked Max, lifting the basketball in the air.

"You're on," Max said and they quickly excused themselves from the girls.

"So you and Lauren," Austin said as they approached the court.

"Yeah, me and Lauren," Max confirmed, though he didn't seemed all that thrilled about the idea. In fact he seemed resigned to it.

"Wow, knock me over with your enthusiasm why don't you?" Austin teased lightly, but clearly Max wasn't in the mood.

"What? She's hot and she wants me and she's decent in the sack, what more could a guy want?" Max said, scathingly.

Austin immediately frowned at his friend. "A few weeks ago, you wanted a hell of a lot more than that."

"Yeah well that girl doesn't want me. She wants someone else or maybe that was just to let me down easy, I don't know, but Lauren's here and she's more than willing," Max snapped.

"So that's all it is? Sex?" Austin asked. "Because I think Lauren thinks it's more than that, obviously since we're out on this farce of a double date."

"She can think whatever she wants," Max said, with a shrug. "Are we done with the therapy session. Can we play now?"

"Sure, man, take the ball out," he said, passing it to his friend and stood at the foul line ready to play hard, if the therapy session wasn't verbal, then it was entirely possible it would be physical.

* * *

><p>The peace and quiet wouldn't last long. She'd been living with Max and Austin for nearly three weeks now and she knew she had to take what she could get. Sooner rather than later the ubiquitous sounds of Halo or Call of Duty would invade from all sides, accompanied by their constant commentary and cacophony of things she politely called, "guy noises." She was grateful for the place to stay, but she now that she had access to the money she'd earned, she needed to find a spot to call her own.<p>

Her search had only taken her to a few real estate websites when despite her prediction that double date would be a disaster, she was shocked to hear the front door slamming and raised voices echoing up the stairs.

"He's your friend, you should talk to him. He's treating her like some...like some..." Kaylie's voice was shrill and obviously more than a little upset.

"Slut who slept with him at a party while they were both drunk, just a few days after her friend dumped him?" Austin shot back. "Guess what, Kaylie, that's what she is. Why are you defending her? After everything she did to you, to Payson, to Sasha. She's a lying, cheating bitch."

"She's my best friend," Kaylie screeched back, her voice cracking.

Kelly sighed and rolled her eyes. They were fighting over Lauren Tanner. That was smart. The voices faded after a while and then she heard the tell tale sound of Kaylie's car starting and pulling out of the driveway.

She waited a while, but then she couldn't help herself. She'd always been more curious than was good for her and so she stuck her head out of her first floor bedroom door, one she'd get studiously locked the night before during the party and saw Austin sitting on the couch, a beer in hand staring at the wall it might say something to him if he waited long enough.

"Testing our your x-ray vision?" Kelly joked as she approached hesitantly.

Austin sniffed his amusement, but remained silent.

"So how much of a horror show was it?" she asked, morbidly curious.

"If you ask Max and Lauren, they probably thought it went great. Max treats her like a hooker, Lauren ignores it, pretending like everything is sunshine and daisies, we can't talk about gymnastics because Kaylie is afraid of Lauren's reaction when she finds out that Sasha upgraded her dismount to that triple twist she performed against China and Kaylie is somehow pissed at me for all of it."

"Wow," Kelly said, digesting all the information. "So what are you going to do about it, Captain America?"

"Superman has x-ray vision, not Captain America," he corrected, avoiding the subject.

"Doesn't matter," she said, trying to lighten the mood. "Batman could kick both their asses."

"You're not serious," Austin said, sitting up and gaping at her. "Superman and Captain America would wipe the floor with Batman."

Kelly shrugged and grinned at him, hoping he got the point, that the change of subject would ease the pressure that seemed to be weighing him down.

"I take back what I said about you, KP, you're alright," Austin said, as he realized her game and smiled at her widely.

She brushed some imaginary dust from her shoulder and smirked. "You're alright too, Tucker." And as the words escaped her lips, Kelly knew she'd have to intensify her search for a place of her own, before she somehow became part of the problems in Austin's life and not part of the solution.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Yay, it's flowing again. I know a lot of you were frustrated with the tension developing in the last few chapters and well, I think it might have just ratcheted up a notch or two, but there was a teeny, tiny release of it, or there almost was anyway. Promise, we get back to the gymnastics in the next chapter. I'm going to adopt one of the shows most favorite plot devices as my own, an invitational, only you know, done right because I don't have to worry about budgets and stunt doubles and ad execs. :-) So get ready, it's going to be intense! Let me know what you thought. Lots of inner turmoil going on here, lots of testosterone too, we heard from Sasha, Mark and Austin, then a little bit of estrogen with KP at the end there, but we still haven't heard from Payson, who probably has the most inner turmoil going on of everyone. So review and sound off!


	13. Chapter 13

Sasha stared out through the interior window onto the gym floor. It was relatively quiet compared to the organized chaos weekend training brought. Nearly one hundred and twenty gymnasts trained at the Rock now from levels four through elite, but late Monday mornings there were only some stragglers from the early Mommy and Me class and the elites, both junior and senior who were either home schooled or finished with their secondary education.

His gaze landed upon a long blonde ponytail flic-flacing her way across the beam and he felt his stomach clench, before redirecting his vision. He knew he'd have to deal with it eventually, what almost happened the other day, but for right now he had other things on his plate.

It was painfully obvious his athletes needed a focus, something tangible to set their minds on. It was difficult to do this time of year, very much considered the "off-season" of their sport, but going into an Olympic year, Sasha knew they couldn't afford a slip in focus.

That's why the phone call he received from Marcus McGowan this morning was so intriguing.

The girls had taken up his challenge to improve their routines and the last two weeks had been consistently hitting their new skills. Normally those routines wouldn't be debuted until the American Cup or the Pacific Rim Championships. But judging by the rapid improvement exhibited by the girls in the last few weeks, he didn't want them to become complacent, confident that they'd mastered all there was to master going into the Olympic year.

Sasha watched Kaylie race down the vault run and punch into her double twisting Yurchenko, making it look easy. His eyes caught on blonde hair bouncing across the beam, this time a different blonde, as Lauren dismounted with her double flic-flac, two and a half twist. Letting his eyes wander he saw Kelly Parker working through a set on bars, Payson spotting her through a release combination that was sure to reel in a big score on the international stage.

He wanted the girls to stay motivated, but really that was only part of it. Mostly wanted the world to see just what they would be up against in London. It was a ballsy move, an invitational event just after World Championships, especially considering their level of success. The rest of the American gymnastics world would be vying to knock the Rock girls off the podium and the eyes of the international community would be fixed upon them, but that kind of pressure cooker would be just what his girls needed going into a year where they would face the most pressure of their young professional careers.

"Good morning," a cheery voice said from behind him and he breathed in deeply, before turning around to face her.

"Good morning, Summer," he said, keeping his tone even. Over the last few days they'd been polite, friendly even, but there was still an underlying tension in their relationship that he knew had to be handled sooner or later.

He sat at his desk, rifling through the notes he'd taken while on the phone with Marcus, intending on giving them to Summer so she could begin making arrangements, but his search was interrupted.

"Sasha, can we talk?" she asked, sitting at her desk, hands folded against her ink blotter, as if in prayer.

Sitting back in his chair and tilting his head in acquiescence, he asked, "Sure, what about?"

"I wanted to apologize again, for what happened with the girls. I know it wasn't my place to, well to get involved at all, and I'm sorry."

Sasha blinked, stunned the apology had come without an caveat, no rehashing of old arguments or zinging accusations, just an apology. "Thank you," he said and figured he may as well be gracious about it. "I want you to know I appreciate how much you care about the girls."

"I do," Summer said. "And I was just trying to do what was best for them, I hope you know that."

Sasha nodded. "I do," he said, the words striking him funnily. There was a time, brief though it may have been, when he thought he one day could be exchanging a different sort of, "I do's" with this woman. Yet, despite it having been in the not so distant past, those feelings were long gone, nearly forgotten. She wanted him to change and he had, as much as he could, while remaining true to himself and still it hadn't been enough. That was no way to build a future, one person doing all the changing, the other remaining obstinately the same.

"Summer," he said, looking down at his desk, his eyes immediately landing on the scrap of paper he'd been searching for just seconds earlier.

"Yes?" she asked and he nearly winced at the hopefulness in her tone. He looked up and she was staring at him, eyes pleading with him to say...well, he didn't know what she wanted him to say, but he surely knew it wasn't what he was about to ask.

He sighed. May as well rip the bandage off, nice and quick. "I just got off the phone with Marcus McGowan regarding an invitational meet next month. Here's the information, could you get started on our travel arrangements? It'll be national team members only, both juniors and seniors. If anyone has any expense issues, send them to me, I'll talk to the NGO about it."

He watched Summer attempt not to react to his words and then her brow creased in confusion. "An invitational meet, in December?" she asked. "Where?"

* * *

><p>"Las Vegas," Sasha said and Kaylie blinked at him in shock. "The NGO has invited us, along with Denver Elite, WOGA, All-Olympia and the Parkettes to compete and to raise money for charity."<p>

"Charity," Kelly said and the entire elite team looked at her. "That's how they're selling this to you? I thought you were smarter than that, Sasha"

Sasha rolled his eyes. "Thank you, Kelly, for your lovely analysis."

Kaylie looked around at her teammates, all of whom still looked shocked by his pronouncement, except Kelly who rolled her eyes, an action that only she could get away with.

"The National Committee has its own reasons for holding this invitational, but that isn't my concern," Sasha said. "My only concern is this team and getting you all to the Olympics next year. This event is a step on that path, do you understand?"

"Yes, Sasha," she echoed along with her teammates.

"Good," he said, "Break for lunch. I want a full rotation this afternoon from everybody."

As soon as he made his way up the stairs to the office, conversations in stage whispers broke out all over the gym.

"You know who's still in Las Vegas, don't you?" Lauren said as they all moved towards their lockers.

"Emily," Austin answered for them all and thought they'd all been thinking the same thing, the name stopped them in their tracks.

"Emily and Damon," Lauren corrected, giving Kaylie a sideways glance. "She's what, three months along now?"

"She's twelve weeks," Payson said, quietly. "She was six weeks when she found out and it's been six weeks since then."

Kaylie blinked. "It feels a lot longer than that." It felt like ages since Emily found out she was pregnant and ran away to Las Vegas, years even. To realize it had only been six weeks since she'd confessed what happened with Damon was startling. Life had changed so completely since then, for all of them.

"Are you guys going to go see her while you're there?" Kelly asked, dangling her keys, indicating she'd be driving them to the Subway for lunch.

"I don't know. That would be weird wouldn't it?" Kaylie asked, frowning up at Austin who shrugged.

"I don't even know if she would want to see us," Payson said. Kaylie nodded, though she knew Emily probably wouldn't mind seeing the others, she couldn't imagine she'd want to see her. After all, her kiss with Damon was the reason she'd left Boulder.

"What I want to know is," Lauren said, as she climbed into the backseat of Kelly's mustang, along with Kaylie and Austin, abruptly changing the subject, "why the NGO is having this invitational now."

Kaylie looked towards Kelly, who'd obviously figured out why.

"They want to see how everyone came out of Worlds," Kelly said, with a shrug,the superiority of earlier gone from her expression and tone. "They want to make sure Payson's ankle is okay, they want to make sure you haven't relapsed," she said nodding towards Kaylie. "They want to make sure that there isn't anyone else in the top gyms in the country who are better than we are."

Payson nodded, as Kelly pulled the car out of the Rock's parking lot. "The US women haven't won a team gold medal at an Olympic games since 1996. They want 2012 badly. They thought they had it in 2008, but they fell short. They aren't going to take chances this time. This isn't going to be like other years, Nationals, Trials, Selection Camp. They're obviously intending on testing us over and over again to make sure we can handle the pressure."

"Do you really think they'd replace us, after we won gold in Rio? I mean we're the World Champions," Kaylie said, looking around for support. She hadn't even given a thought to the idea that they wouldn't all be on the Olympic team after their victory at Worlds. She'd seen it as fait accompli.

Kelly scoffed from the driver's seat as she pulled into the Subway parking lot. "They'll do whatever they have to do to win."

They ordered quickly and sat down.

"Crap, they put mayo on mine," Kelly complained, eyeing her sandwich as if it had every intention of killing her Olympic dreams. "Be right back," she said, in a sing-songy voice that made Kaylie pity the guy behind the counter. Then she glanced around the table, seeing Payson and Lauren, separated only by Austin, who was devouring his meatball hero like a vacuum.

"Austin," she said, sweetly, grabbing his attention. "Could you come outside with me for a sec. There's something I want to talk to you about, you know that thing we discussed earlier."

Mouth full, he simply stared at her for a moment, before swallowing roughly. "That thing?" he asked, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Yes," she said, gritting her teeth at his obtuse response to her hint. "That thing." She stood up and walked away from the table, knowing he was sure to follow.

Kaylie made it outside the restaurant and three seconds later Austin did as well, still looking confused. "What thing did you want to talk about?"

"Nothing," she said, looking through the glass window at Lauren and Payson who were sitting silently at the table. "I just wanted to give Lauren a chance to talk to Payson. I know she wanted to tell her about Max and apologize again and since Payson generally avoids her like the plague, this might be her only chance."

Austin shook his head and sighed. "Look, I don't want to fight about it again, I hate fighting with you, but I still don't understand why you continue to be Lauren's friend."

Kaylie looked up at her boyfriend, her gorgeous, charming, wonderful boyfriend and sighed. "She's my best friend, Austin. I told you that. Maybe it's different for guys, I don't know, but I can't just write her off. We've been through too much together. Payson knows that too, she's just hurt right now. She'll come around eventually."

Austin looked back into the restaurant at the two blonde girls sitting in stony silence at the table. "I know that's what you want, Kaylie, everything to go back to the way it was, but..."

"I'm right about this, you'll see."

* * *

><p>"That was really subtle, don't you think?" Lauren said, not being able to keep up the quiet for any longer.<p>

Payson snorted and took a sip of her water. "Kaylie is a lot of things. Subtle isn't one of them."

Lauren nodded. "She was just trying to give me some time to talk to you privately, I think."

Payson's finally stopped staring at her food and looked up at Lauren. She'd been so distracted by what almost happened with Sasha and then the idea of a meet to prepare for, that she'd forgotten how angry she was with Lauren for a few minutes and mindlessly followed her teammates to lunch out of sheer force of habit. Her distraction hadn't lasted long however and now she was furious with herself for being so air-headed.

"There was something I wanted to talk to you about," Lauren continued, oblivious to Payson's inner dialogue.

"I'm listening," she said, hoping that it wasn't another apology. Lauren wasn't stupid. She had to know that all the apologies in the world would have little affect on her.

"It's about Max," Lauren said and Payson's eyebrows rose of their own volition.

"Max," she repeated.

"He and I are together now and I wanted you to hear it from me. I don't know what happened between you two and I don't want to know, but I thought, after everything that happened..."

"I saw you," Payson interrupted. "The other night at Austin's party, I saw you two dancing. I figured that you would be...you know...whatever."

"Together," Lauren supplied for her.

She didn't know what possessed her, perhaps the last vestiges of her friendship with Lauren or that her anger had cooled considerably over the last few days as other matters, more important concerns had taken precedence in her mind, but the words flowed out before she could stop them. "I'm happy for you," she said, "I know it was what you wanted and I'm honestly sorry I got in the way of that."

Lauren looked shocked by her response, perfectly manicured eyebrows lifting nearly into her braided bangs. "Thanks," she said, carefully. "And I'm..."

"Please, Lo," Payson said, shaking her head. "Please don't apologize again. We're here, we're having a nice lunch with our teammates, everything is civil and that's fine by me, but no more apologies. We have to concentrate on our gymnastics and every time you apologize to me all I want to do is kick you in the teeth," Lauren's eyes grew wide at her words, "so stop with the apologies and everything can just stay like this, nice and civil. Professional, okay?"

Lauren nodded, as they both caught sight of Kelly returning from the counter with a new sandwich and Kaylie and Austin making their way back inside. "Civil and professional. I can do that."

"Great," Payson said plastering on a smile as Austin took his seat next to her. "Don't ever do that again," she said softly between gritted teeth. Austin nodded subtly. She then glared across the table at Kaylie who didn't even have the grace to look ashamed. She just shrugged.

"So Payson, even though you skipped out early, it seems like you made quite the impression on one of my buddies," Austin said, smirking in her direction.

"Who?" she asked, wracking her brain, trying to remember the people she'd met at Austin's party. "Oh," she said, her mind finally settling on the one guy she'd given her name to, Olympic snowboarder Scotty Lago, the penis-medal man himself.

"Ah, she remembers," Austin said. "I guess he made an impression too."

Payson snorted in derision. "Yeah, enough of an impression for me to remember his name and then for me to remember why I knew his name in the first place."

"Wait, who wants your number?" Lauren asked, suddenly extremely interested, Payson guessed because despite all evidence pointing to her and Max being over, a new guy would make it more official.

"Scotty Lago, the idiot who got his picture taken holding his Olympic bronze medal at his crotch while some girl bit it," Kelly provided her with an answer.

Austin snorted. "That was classic," he said. Payson just rolled her eyes. "I take it you weren't impressed. Does that mean you don't want me to give him your number?"

Payson frowned. "He wanted my number?" she asked.

"Yeah, but he was under the impression that you had a boyfriend," Austin said, raising a brow in her direction. "Can't imagine where he got that idea from." His tone was a little more knowing than she was comfortable with.

Payson looked away from him, down at her sandwich. She knew exactly why Scotty Lago thought she had a boyfriend. Sasha pulling up on his motorcycle to give her a ride home, the way she'd pressed herself against him, a level of physical comfort with each other that would seem to the outside world as much more than it was. "I can't imagine either," she said quietly. She could feel three sets of eyes fixed on the top of her head. She looked up at all of them and shook her head. "Sorry, Austin, but he's not exactly my type."

"Yeah I didn't think so," Austin said with a shrug, letting it go, but Payson felt his eyes on her, even when Kaylie abruptly changed the subject, dissecting the strengths and weaknesses of their competition in Las Vegas, particularly the junior elites who would be making the jump up to the senior level in 2012.

* * *

><p>"That was delicious, Mom," Payson said, as she stood up, collecting the dishes from the table to wash.<p>

"Thanks, honey," Kim said, smiling around the table at her family. It was becoming a regular occurrence, having all four of them at dinner and it was something she could definitely get used to.

"Mom, there's so much leftover," Payson said, from near the stove.

"I know, I made some extra. I thought I'd bring it over to Sasha. You know how hopeless he is in the kitchen."

Payson smiled over her shoulder. "I'll take it to him," she offered. "There was something I wanted to talk to him about anyway and I didn't get a chance today at the Rock."

"What about?" Becca asked, loading the diswasher after Payson scraped the excess food off the plates.

"What?" Payson said, mind obviously elsewhere. "Oh, about my floor routine."

"And it can't wait until tomorrow at the gym?" Mark asked, his tone light, but Kim recognized a hint of something else in his voice. Suspicion perhaps? She glanced over at her husband. She took in his furrowed brow and slanted frown. His eyes weren't narrowed however and his jaw wasn't twitching. Not suspicion then, but concern.

Payson shrugged. "I guess, but two birds, one meatloaf," she said, with a smile, nodding at the dish of food Kim had set aside.

She didn't have to wait long to find out what he was so concerned about. Becca had taken Phoebe on her walk almost immediately following the sound of Payson's car backing out of the driveway when Mark, never a man you would call verbose, started talking.

"I know we've talked about this already, Kim," he began, "but I just, have you watched them together?" he asked, running a hand through his auburn hair, mussing it thoroughly.

"Who?" she asked, shaking her head. He pursed his lips and then rolled his eyes at her. "Sasha and," he hesistated, before finding his footing again. "Sasha and Payson."

"I watch them together all the time, Mark," she said, still not understanding. "This isn't about that crush Pay had on him, is it?"

Mark shook his head. There hadn't been any tension of that kind as far as she could tell between her daughter and her coach. She'd watched them carefully for a while, hoping and praying they'd be able to get back to where they were before and it seemed they had, respect and affection, sometimes humor and above all, dedication to the sport, those were the things that united them. Then Mark continued however.

"It's not a crush I'm worried about, Kim," he said, shaking his head again. "I sense something between them, something bigger than a silly crush."

"You sense something," Kim said, laughter creeping into her voice, though she tried to tamp it down.

"I'm not saying this right, I just, I'm worried about her. I don't want her to get her heart broken, not again."

Kim nodded, understanding that feeling. "I wouldn't worry then. I don't think Payson's in danger of getting her heart broken. Sasha is the last person in the world that would hurt her."

"I know," Mark said, acknowledging the truth in her words, "I think that worries me even more."

* * *

><p>Sasha stared at his pathetically bare kitchen cupboard and sighed heavily, resigning himself to Shredded Wheat. After two weeks of Kim Keeler's outstanding cooking he was back to fending for himself. He poured the cardboard like cereal into a bowl and his stomach growled a preemptive protest at what he was about to ingest.<p>

He moved towards the fridge to dig out the milk when a knock at his door interrupted his mission.

"Payson," he said, blinking in disbelief, thinking her a mirage of some sort, showing up at his door step looking every bit as lovely as she always did, holding a plate of food.

She smiled at him, a small half grin, before she stepped by him, moving towards his tiny kitchen. She set the plate down on his table, leaning against it for a moment, before taking a deep breath and facing him.

"We need to talk."

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** For once, somehow, I don't have much to say. Please let me know what you thought of the chapter. I'm currently battling my way through a terrible case of writer's block, so I'm kind of depending upon your comments to inspire me and get the writing juices flowing again.

Also, if you haven't already, go check out my buddy, Sleeping_Rory's fic. It's called, "At the Edge" and it's fan-damn-tastic. If you're a Payson/Sasha fan (and I"m sure most of you are) it's a can't miss fic!

Oh, lastly, guys, just because I hint at the possibility of one ship or another, that doesn't mean the story is going to end up one way or another. I'm a Payson/Sasha writer, I freely admit that, but I don't really ship anyone else with anyone else in particular. All other ships in my stories are window dressing as far as I'm concerned. I write where I feel there is chemistry and sometimes a story takes me places I never thought I'd end up. So, while you're free to leave as many "I love my ship" or "I hate this ship" reviews as you like, it's probably not going to change the story much.


	14. Chapter 14

"Talk?" he repeated the last word and Payson frowned. He made it sound like a root canal would be less painful.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she pursed her lips. "Yes, talk. I tried not to think about it all day, but then I got home and I realized that I really needed to talk to you."

"Me too," he cut in; his voice wasn't more than a raspy whisper as he took a step towards her. "I'm sorry. I should have said it sooner, but I am, Payson, so sorry."

Payson blinked at him. "For what?" she asked, wondering what the hell he was talking about.

"For…" he trailed off. "Wait, what are you talking about?" he asked, straightening to his full height.

Payson wrinkled her nose in confusion. "The double layout Tara and I worked on today. I know that would be three new tumbling passes, but it felt really good and Tara agreed. She said she'd talk to you about it after practice, but I guess she didn't. What did you think I was talking about?"

Sasha waived away her question and shook his head. "Nothing. You and Tara were working on a double layout? She didn't mention anything. I don't know, Pay—."

"It wasn't nothing," she said, cutting him off. She wasn't about to let him get away with that. He'd obviously had another topic swirling around his head, something he admittedly couldn't get off his mind. "Sasha?" she asked, as he avoided her gaze. "Talk to me, you said you were sorry and what were you apologizing for?"

"Don't worry about it; it's nothing," Sasha said, still refusing to meet her eye.

Payson felt something snap inside of her. "It's not nothing." If he didn't want to talk to her, that was one thing, but she could feel the lie in his words. "Damn it, look at me," she said, before the words even fully formed in her mind. The sharpness of her tone surprised even her and shocked him into finally looking in her direction.

His eyes burned into hers full of so much intensity and passion that she couldn't look away, though she had no desire to. "Oh," she said simply, suddenly feeling very stupid. "I thought," she began, finally managing to break eye contact, fixating on the beige tile of his kitchen floor. "I thought we were just going to…"

"Just going to what?" he asked, that same raspy whisper, a tone that tugged at something deep inside her, as if she could feel the rumble through her body.

"Pretend," she said, thinking that was the best word for what they'd been doing since his return from Romania, "pretend like we have been since…"

He took up her train of thought, but his words shocked her. "Since that night before Worlds at the Tanner's party…." He caught himself, stopping midsentence as she had. She opened her mouth just slightly, but no words were forthcoming. She simply took a step closer to him, then another. She stopped in front of him, the fabric of her sweater nearly brushing against the cotton of his t-shirt. Then she looked up into his eyes and that compelled whatever words he restrained just moments before. "And that morning by the lake, after Emily left and then the other day at the store and then here. We…I…" he trailed off, seemingly at a loss to describe what was happening between them.

For a moment, she didn't allow herself more than that, but just for a moment, a spark of hope lit inside of her. "Sasha?" she asked, softly, at no more than a whisper, for fear a higher volume would break the moment. There were moments when she thought he was aware of it, when a spark of attraction would flicker in his eyes, but she was never sure, not until this moment.

"I shouldn't feel this way," he said, reaching up, his fingertips caressing her hairline, then stroking against her forehead with his thumb, tracing the line of her jaw before dropping his hand away entirely. "And neither should you, but I shouldn't have let us pretend like it wasn't happening. I'm sorry."

"Don't," she said, their hands brushing before her fingers caught his, entwining them together. "Don't apologize. It's no one's fault. It just happened."

"But it shouldn't have. I shouldn't have let it," he said and she could feel him slipping away from her. His fingers tugged from hers, but she held fast. "Especially after what we went through before Worlds, what we're still going through, all those whispers; I should have more control than this."

She shook her head, hating that he felt so awful. She could see it in his face, the tension at his mouth, around his eyes, the set of his jaw. The self-loathing was nearly palpable and she didn't know what she could do to make it better. "I don't think it's something we can choose."

"Of course we can choose," he argued, his voice dropping, both in tenor and volume. "We always have a choice, in everything."

His words didn't have the effect he intended, perhaps he was simply trying to castigate himself, but Payson felt that small spark of hope growing. "Then we chose this…I'd rather it be a choice. I wouldn't want you to feel this way against your will."

He shook his head fiercely. "That's not what I meant. Don't you understand what kind of man this makes me, Payson?"

She scoffed at the absurdity of what he wanted to believe of himself. "The kind of man what makes you? Nothing's happened, Sasha. And nothing has to happen." A tiny part of her heart broke a little as the words spilled from her lips. "We feel what we feel, it doesn't mean we have to…"

The press of his mouth to hers silenced her last words. Their joined hands tightened together as he pulled her closer. It went no further than that, it was as chaste as a kiss could be, but the implications were mind bending. They pulled back slowly, his lips trailing to her cheek, then her forehead, as she moved closer, wrapping her arms around his shoulders, desperate to keep him close.

"Do you understand?" he whispered against her hair, one hand at her waist, fingertips pressing into the gentle curve of her hip.

"Yes," she said, feeling his heart pounding in his chest, knowing her pulse was racing as well.

There would be no denying this, no more pretending, as she'd put it. He'd understood that from the beginning, that what they felt was more powerful than the monumental self control they both possessed.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"What on Earth could you possibly be sorry for?" he asked, laughter in his voice, though it held little humor.

She shrugged, moving closer still, resting her forehead against his shoulder. "I don't know," she admitted. "I'm just sorry. And I wish…"

"What…what do you wish?" he asked, his voice nearly cracking. She looked up at him, blinking quickly trying to interpret his expression. Just an hour ago she'd thought she could read him as well as anybody, now she wasn't so sure.

"I wish things were different," she whispered, remembering that she'd snapped at him for uttering words to that effect the morning after Emily left. Perhaps he hadn't felt this way then, at least not completely, but she had and now she could only hope he saw some solution for them that she didn't, a path they could take together, unlikely though it may be.

"But they're not," he said and just as she feared, she felt him begin to pull away.

"Wait, not yet" she said, softly, her fingers bunching into the fabric of his shirt.

He nodded slowly, his breath ghosting over her lips before he bent his head to hers again. Payson sighed into the kiss, his mouth slanting over hers. He took her bottom lip between his, before gently deepening the kiss, his tongue nudging against hers. Payson pushed up onto her toes, winding her arms around his neck, as his arms fully embraced her, pulling her body flush against his.

Then it was over, both instinctively stepping back, his hands slid from her waist, her arms fell to her sides limply. They gasped for air, two world-class athletes out of breath from a kiss.

"Okay," she said, reaching out to smooth the wrinkles she'd made in his shirt, before thinking better of it and rocking back on her heels.

"Okay," he affirmed, running a hand through his hair roughly, looking anywhere but into her eyes, his other hand clenching into a fist against his thigh.

"I'll see you tomorrow at the Rock," she said, wondering what they just decided, but somehow already knowing the rules.

"Tomorrow," he agreed. She wondered if he knew the rules as well.

She made it halfway to the door of his apartment before she heard his voice again.

"Payson," he said, stopping her in her tracks, though she didn't turn around. "We'll work on the double layout in the pit. If I like what I see, maybe we'll add it in for Vegas."

She managed a nod, feeling the tears burning her eyes, though she swallowed them back. She'd cried more in the last few weeks than she had in the rest of her years combined. She was done crying. "Good night, Sasha," she said, slipping out the door, racing down the stairs of his apartment complex, into the parking lot and drove away before she had time to reconsider and race back to his arms.

* * *

><p>"Sasha," a voice called, though it was far away and more an annoyance than anything else. "Sasha," the voice called again, this time closer. The world was shaking and then, "Sasha!"<p>

"What?" Sasha said, sitting up quickly, blinking awake, or at least semi-conscious. His vision focused and landed upon Kim Keeler, standing next to his desk, frowning down at him in both concern and disapproval. Her motherly instinct tended to spill over to him, especially when he was being particularly self-abusive.

"Did you sleep here?" she asked, her tone sharp.

"What?" he asked again, trying to get his bearings. What happened last night? He came to the Rock. Why had he come to the Rock? He remembered tossing and turning, sleep evading him, not being able to find respite from his thoughts on his new enormous bed. Why? Then it all came back to him in one giant storm of emotion and regret. Payson, a confession, a kiss, a lingering embrace, a second kiss and then what? Nothing, just a cold, empty flat, alone with his miserable self and the bed she helped him choose, not exactly a recipe for a good night's sleep.

"Sasha?" Kim's voice broke into his thoughts and this time he was grateful. He didn't need to spiral, he'd save the deep depression for a year from now, after the Olympics, after he fulfilled his commitment to his girls, to the National team and most of all, to her.

"Sorry, yeah, I couldn't sleep, so I figured I'd get a head start on some paper work," he lied smoothly. "I guess it was enough to cure my insomnia."

Kim laughed and Sasha gave her a weak smile in return. "It's a good thing I made a coffee run then," she said, handing him a cardboard cup. "You look like you could use it. And a shave too, you're looking a little more raggedy than usual, everything all right?" she asked, each word sending a stab of guilt through his chest.

He nodded. "I'm fine," he said, before taking a sip from the coffee, allowing the hot liquid to nearly scald his tongue. "Have the girls arrived yet?" he asked, glancing out the interior window, catching sight of some junior girls loitering around the beam. His eyes drifted to the glass doors where he saw the figure he was looking for racing down the carpet towards the vault, throwing her body into a round off, punching off the springboard, twisting her body onto the board, pushing into a simple handspring as a warm up for her competition vault, ideally landing on two feet, rather than just the one she used at Worlds.

"A few juniors," Kim said, "and of course Payson. She beat me here again today." She rolled her eyes affectionately at her daughter and Sasha nodded.

"I had Summer start on the travel arrangements for Vegas. You wouldn't be interested in chaperoning, would you? All expenses paid by the Rock, of course."

He was shocked when Kim snorted and shook her head. "Mark, Becca and I will be in Minnesota that weekend. It's insane to try and travel back home for Thanksgiving and Christmas, so we always split the difference in early December. My mother was thrilled that Payson won't be joining us, so thanks for that, by the way."

Kim's easy conversation had Sasha lulled back into their usual comfortable banter. "So coal in your stocking this year?" he asked, feeling a genuine grin spread across his face.

"You got it," Kim said, smiling ruefully.

"I guess I'm on my own then," he said, frowning, wondering how he was going to keep his one set of eyes on all eight girls traveling to Las Vegas.

"You could always ask Summer," Kim sang out lightly, her hint not subtle in the slightest.

Sasha frowned. "Chaperoning isn't exactly Summer's strength, may I remind you that the girls ended up in the wrong country the last time she was put in charge of them?"

"Oh, I don't know, I still say we were right where we were supposed to be," a voice added from the door.

His lips pressed together and he hummed his disagreement at Payson as she strode into the office, looking much better than he did, well rested even. Obviously she had little trouble sleeping. The thought that she was so unaffected bothered him more than he liked.

He felt rather than saw her eye roll. "Do you need something?" he asked, studiously looking over his desk, as if whatever was there was more important than whatever she needed.

"When you get a chance, you said last night we could work on the double layout. You were drooling on your desk when I got here, so I ran through bars, beam and vault. Are you ready now?" she asked.

Kim actually barked out a laugh, before managing to glare disapprovingly at her daughter's glib tone. Sasha overlooked it completely. If a borderline insubordinate attitude was what she needed to get through today, then that was fine. Tomorrow, maybe not, but for today, he understood.

"Yeah, let's go," he said, nodding to Kim as he moved out from behind his desk and followed Payson down to the floor.

As she descended the last step, she hesitated, before turning and facing him. "Sorry," she whispered, before exhaling sharply. "I don't know why I…"

He shook his head. "It's fine," he cut her off, not wanting an apology from her when he was the one at fault. "Let's get to work."

She bit her lip, looking up at him through her lashes and managed a grimace and a nod, before moving purposefully towards the annex, where they'd be able to focus on her tumbling and nothing else.

* * *

><p>Austin stared straight ahead at the tumbling run, trying to ignore the flash of blonde hair racing by him just a few feet away. He launched up into the air, taking three quick strides into a round off, two and a half twisting double layout. His feet hit the plush triangles that filled the pit, letting him know had the skill been performed on the floor, he would have landed it on his feet.<p>

"Nice," Max called from his position leaning up against the wall. The sling was long gone and after another week or so of physical therapy, he would be back in the gym training again.

Austin lifted himself out of the pit and grabbed his water bottle from the floor, taking a long swig. The annex was the only place at the Rock to practice tumbling, but it got hot as hell, even during the autumn months. He looked around, considering donating some money to have air conditioning installed or the entire annex renovated. He turned around just in time to see Payson flying through the air again on her double layout. Maybe Keeler would go in on it with him?

"She added a double layout?" Max asked quietly as they watched Sasha and Payson discuss whatever tiny flaw existed in her tumbling, coach and athlete moving back towards the end of the run.

"She upgraded her double arabian to a double arabian piked, then her one and a half, full, to a double, full and now this double layout, I guess it'll take the place of her double back."

"I guess Lauren was right," Max muttered.

Austin snorted. "Lauren is almost never right."

Max smirked, causing Austin to frown. It was only a matter of time before Max's obvious lack of real interest in Lauren blew up in all their faces. "Well she was right about this. She told me Payson would drop me as soon as I got in the way of her gymnastics and obviously as soon as she decided to go nuts with her floor routine, she did."

Austin shook his head. "I thought you said she had feelings for someone else." Max had never really shared most of the details of how Payson dumped him, but that was one of the things he'd let slip, a vague implication that Payson had feelings for someone else that prevented her from being with Max. Austin hadn't really thought about it since. Payson Keeler's social life wasn't exactly high on his list of priorities.

"That's kind of what she said, but I think the only thing that girl has feelings for is the gold medal podium, man." Max watched as Payson ran through her tumbling pass again, totally unaware either of them were even in the annex, let alone watching her. "I'll see you at home. KP said she was going to look for apartments after training tonight so we're on our own for dinner."

"Yeah." Austin nodded. He knew that it was just a temporary arrangement, but he enjoyed having Kelly around and not just because she was a pretty good cook and tended to clean up after them. She was a cool girl and refreshingly chill. Then again, he thought, as he watched Kaylie, Kelly and Lauren push through the doors connecting the annex to the rest of the gym, chatting and laughing, maybe the sooner she moved out, the better.

"Ladies," Max said as they approached them.

Lauren smiled brightly. "I didn't know you were coming in today," she said, taking three light steps towards Max and careful not to put any pressure on his shoulders, pecked him on the lips.

"I just stopped by to say hi to Austin…and to you of course," Max added when Austin glared at him over the girls' heads.

"Come on, let's go 'say hi' properly, _outside_," Lauren said, grabbing Max's hand and mock-dragging him away.

"Two more weeks at the most," Kelly said as soon as they were out of ear shot.

"Four," Austin challenged, having total confidence that Max wouldn't come clean anytime soon and that Lauren was blissfully ignorant of what Max really thought of her.

"You're on," Kelly said, smirking up at him, eyes twinkling mischievously.

"You two are awful," Kaylie said, shaking her head. "Lauren told me she and Max had a long talk and that they're both on the same page."

Austin shook his head, not wanting to fight about it again, especially now that Kaylie thought everything was just fine with her best friend's relationship and wasn't bothering him about his own best friend's lack of commitment.

"Kaylie," Sasha's voice echoed over their conversation. "Let's get going."

They all turned and saw Payson moving towards them, obviously having finished up her tumbling training.

"Word to the wise, he's cranky today," she whispered to Kaylie as they crossed paths.

"Thanks, Pay," Kaylie said and they bumped fists.

"Keeler," Austin greeted as she joined them.

"Tucker," she responded with a smile. "Hey Kel. I got your text this morning and I totally forgot to respond, but I'll definitely come apartment hunting with you tonight."

"Cool," Kelly said, finishing the tape on her wrists. "I better get over there too before he starts in on me."

Payson grabbed a water bottle from her gym bag up against the wall. They watched in silence as Kelly took her place at the other tumbling run, while Kaylie worked on her double arabian.

Austin turned towards Payson, whose eyes were unfocused as she stared into space.

"Keeler you in there?" he asked, waving a hand in front of her face.

She shook her head. "Yeah, sorry, what's up?" she asked, giving him her full attention.

He decided to just jump right in. Payson wasn't a 'beat around the bush' kind of girl and would probably get pissed at him for trying to hedge. "Max thinks you dumped him because he was getting in the way of your gymnastics."

Payson rolled her eyes. "Your friend is an idiot."

"No argument there," Austin agreed, "but he is my friend."

"Is he going to tell Lauren the truth?" Payson asked, an eyebrow raised knowingly.

"Probably not, but then he only told you because he really cared about you," he challenged.

Payson shrugged. "Regardless, despite evidence to the contrary, Lauren's not an idiot. Eventually that whole thing is going to blow up in their faces."

"Probably sooner rather than later," he admitted, "don't think you can change the subject thought, Keeler. You told Max there was someone else. Anybody I know?"

Payson smiled, her eyes sparkling at him in a sad sort of way and suddenly Austin understood, platonically speaking of course, just what Nicky Russo and Max and then Scotty saw in Payson Keeler. There was a remarkable depth to her eyes. "None of your business, Tucker," she said, the sadness suddenly gone, replaced by a false cheerfulness. "You're such a gossip," she accused playfully.

"It's part of my charm," he said joked lightly, allowing her to change tracks.

"Hmm," she agreed, though her mind had clearly shifted to something else. "Listen, I get Max is your friend and if there's something in the guy code or whatever that says we can't be…"

Austin shook his head. "No way, Keeler," he cut her off, "you're my friend too and if this other guy, whoever he is gives you any trouble, you let me know, okay?"

"I wouldn't worry about it," she murmured softly, which only served to make him more curious than ever about this mystery guy of Payson Keeler's.

He opened his mouth try and get a little more information out of her when Sasha's voice reverberated through the annex. "Where the hell is Lauren? She was supposed to start tumbling fifteen minutes ago."

"Would you go…I mean I would, but I don't want to intrude on…" Payson said, frowning.

"Yeah, I'll go get her," Austin said with a nod, "If you handle Coach McGrouchy."

She laughed then, a pleasant sound, attracting the attention of most of the people around them. "Deal."

Austin turned and made his way to the door, glancing back over his shoulder as Payson approached their coach who was clearly agitated, a state where most other Rock gymnasts would avoid him if at all possible. He saw her circle him for a moment, not speaking, but simply standing close. She said something and Sasha nodded. Their coach's eyes were still focused upon Kaylie and Kelly's tumbling runs, but Austin watched as suddenly his shoulders relaxed and his hands fell from the aggressive cross over his chest. He shook his head in astonishment as he pushed through the door to the annex, bracing himself for whatever compromising position he was most certainly about to witness.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, so it happened. A kiss, TWO kisses in fact and yet still so much unresolved. Bet you all thought it was only a dream for a couple of seconds. Haha, I'm cruel, but not that cruel! What do you think is going to happen? There's lots of different ways their relationship can go now, though it seems like they've got the professional stuff down. Anyway, let me know what you think, not just about Payson and Sasha, but about what's going down with Austin and his crazy social life. Seems like a love…I don't know, trapezoid might be brewing. Poor Austin or Yay for Austin, depending upon how you look at it!

Also, on the off chance anyone with any kind of power in regards to this stumbles in this direction, the Women's Code of Points, is SO MUCH EASIER to read than the Men's. Someone needs to take a hatchet to the Men's Code of Points and make it legible and not in three languages at the same time. Okay, rant over.


	15. Chapter 15

"Why did you ask me to do this again?" Payson said, trying to mask the whine that crept into her voice. "I'm not into decorating or any of that kind of stuff. That's Kaylie or even Lauren."

Kelly smiled and rolled her eyes. "Duh," she said, eyeing Payson's practical purple jacket and jeans, matched with fur lined moccasin slippers made more for comfort than style.

"Thanks," Payson muttered and Kelly laughed at the tone of voice, somehow both flattered and offended at the same time.

"You might not be the next Design Star," Kelly said, "but you'll be able to tell me if I'm getting my eyeballs ripped out by some shark of a real estate agent. Kaylie's been a great friend, but she has no idea what things cost, not really. You on the other hand…"

Payson sighed heavily. "I don't know_ anything _about real estate, KP."

"Maybe not," Kelly acknowledged even that. "But you know the value of a dollar. The rest of the girls would be useless at this and Austin would be even worse."

Kelly navigated her Mustang into the parking lot of the apartment complex.

"This place is nice," Payson commented. "The living rooms are really big and there's plenty of room in the one bedrooms for a king sized bed."

"The only apartment available is a two bedroom," Kelly said, slamming the car into park, jolting the both of them a little bit then she turned and studied Payson. Her eyes had a far away look to them, almost mesmerized. "You've been here before?" she asked, unbuckling her seatbelt.

Payson blinked and then shook her head, as if trying to clear it. "Yeah," she said softly, getting out of the car and looking across the parking lot. She nodded in that direction and Kelly saw a silver truck parked next to the familiar Norton motorcycle. "Sasha lives here."

"Oh," Kelly said, the information processing before she had a chance to figure out what that might mean. Payson was already halfway down the sidewalk, towards the manager's office when something akin to worry clicked in her head. "Payson, wait," she called out.

"What?" Payson said, gesturing towards the office. "Did you change your mind about this complex just because your coach lives here too?"

"No," Kelly said, shaking her head. "Why…how do you know where Sasha lives? I mean that whole kissing him thing, that was just… and I was totally just messing with you about the whole creep thing back in Denver, you know that right? It's not…how do you know he has a king sized bed?" She studied Payson carefully when it seemed no outright denial was forthcoming. "Payson, you and Sasha…"

Payson took a deep breath, before looking her dead in the eye. "No, that's not…my family and I helped him move in last weekend. My parents, Becca, all of us," she said, trailing off.

"Oh," Kelly said feeling both relieved and somehow suspicious all at the same time, "right, of course. Duh. I mean you're Payson Keeler; you'd never be stupid enough to hook up with your coach, not like, for real anyway."

"Exactly," Payson said with a small eye roll and smile. "Can we go meet the manager now?"

* * *

><p>"First and last month," the complex supervisor said, "and the apartment comes with a parking spot. You can get another for a hundred a month."<p>

"What about snow removal?" Payson asked, crossing her arms over her chest and raising an eyebrow at the thankfully decidedly normal looking man in his early forties who lived in the complex with his family along with serving as the super.

"Included in the rent," the man said smoothly. "Sidewalks, common areas and the parking lot."

Payson pressed on, however. "Included like it gets done eventually if you leave it for two weeks or included like it snows over night and it's gone when you wake up along with the ice accumulation?"

"The latter, within reason," he said, smirking at her friend and Kelly couldn't help but join in. "I'll let you girls talk. I'll be down in the office getting some paperwork together if you decide to take it."

They watched him go and Kelly glanced around the living room one more time.

"What do you think? You can easily afford it," Payson said.

Kelly raised a speculative brow, "And how do you know what I can afford?"

Payson laughed. "Because I can easily afford it and you've been at this endorsement deal thing a lot longer than I have. It's a nice complex, secure, the manager seems normal, Sasha's right down the hallway in an emergency."

"Great light, big rooms, nice kitchen," Kelly added. "The only thing is it's a two bedroom."

"Extra space isn't a bad thing," Payson said, pragmatically.

"Extra space or space for a roommate," Kelly said, turning around from perusing the custom bookshelf in the living room to eye Payson meaningfully.

Payson shook her head and smiled. "Is that why you really wanted me to come see the place with you? You want a roommate? Kelly, my parents would freak out."

Kelly nodded her head back and forth allowing the point. "But if you were a normal teenager you'd already be in college, living in a dorm, doing things _normal_ kids do, this isn't that much different. Plus, you said it yourself, this is a nice complex, safe, secure, Sasha right down the hall in case of emergencies."

"Why?" Payson asked, still looking extremely skeptical. "Why do you want a roommate?"

"I like having roommates, even though Austin and Max are totally disgusting. They leave their crap everywhere and don't even get me started on the bathroom situation, but I do like living with someone."

"But why me?"

"I figure you'd be the only person I wouldn't want to kill after a few weeks and there's like no drama with you, Keeler. I don't need any more drama in my life."

Kelly watched as Payson looked around the living room and sighed.

"I'll think about it."

* * *

><p>Kim Keeler winced as she entered the Rock, a grating mix of recent pop, rap and techno hits assaulting her ears violently. On the main floor, teenaged girls dressed in as little as possible, mostly spandex boy shorts and sports bras were violently and suggestively pounding through their routine.<p>

"Forgot the circus was coming to town," she muttered to herself, as she climbed the stairs to her office, shutting the glass door behind her, though it did little to stifle the noise. Tara, the Rock's assistant coach doubled as a cheerleading choreographer for the local high schools and with the end of high school football season, the cheer squads were booking more and more time at the Rock to have their routines professionally choreographed for the upcoming competition season.

"It's tough to watch after seeing what the gymnasts do on a daily basis, watered down dance and tumbling aren't all that impressive," Summer said, from her seat at the desk, smiling at her hesitantly.

Kim managed a small smile in return. Since Summer's confession about keeping silent on the subject of Lauren's betrayal things had been tense between the two gym managers. After things cooled down Kim's anger had abated, but the friendship they once shared was damaged, perhaps irreparably. It was a side to Summer that truly surprised Kim. She possessed an ability to rationalize away a firmly held and often times loudly preached values system. It wasn't a quality to be admired and she hadn't expected it of her friend.

"Kim?" Summer's voice intruded on her thoughts.

Kim shook her head. "Sorry, I was a million miles away," she said, keeping her voice light. Eventually the tension would dissipate, but for now she'd simply fake it.

"I just wanted to run an idea by you," Summer said, picking up her notebook. "The Vegas Invitational is an unexpected expense and rather than pass it along to the Rock families during the upcoming holiday season, I thought maybe a fundraiser would be a good idea."

"Just not another fashion show," Kim said.

"Summer frowned. "But it was such a huge success last time. We easily made up the money to cover Nationals and…."

"And Ronnie is out of the country and not here to organize it again. It was her contacts that got us the donations and we can't count on those without her," Kim finished for her. "Plus, like you said, it's the holidays, if we're going to fundraise it should be something people can give as a gift, something better than they can find in a store."

Kim raised her eyebrows as Summer nodded in agreement. "Which brings me to my next idea," she said. "An auction. Not a silent one like last time, but open bidding for items. Lessons at the Rock, leos, trampolines, things like that, but the big ticket items will be Rock Experiences."

"Rock Experiences?" she asked, becoming more and more unsure of the idea's merit.

"A gymnastics lesson with World All-Around Champion, Payson Keeler, things like that," Summer said, "We could bring in an auctioneer, which is always exciting; it'll help drive up the bidding and I think parents would be able to justify spending money on something like that for their daughters, a once in a life time experience."

Kim couldn't find fault with the idea, in fact it was a brilliant concept. The only problem was, "How do we convince Sasha it's a good idea?"

"Convince me what is a good idea?" Sasha said, striding into the office, as usual dominating the space.

After a hesitant glance at Summer, Kim spoke. "An auction, to raise money for the Vegas Invitational. Lessons at the Rock, leotards, some autographs, memorabilia, but also "Rock Experiences." Parents can bid of them for their little girls and boys for some of our higher profile athletes. The girls and Austin probably can come up with something they're comfortable with, lessons, shopping whatever," Kim trailed off.

Sasha snorted. "So our fundraiser is going to boil down to win a date with Austin Tucker?" he asked, smirking.

"If you don't like it, you just had to say so," Summer snapped.

Raising his hands in defense, Sasha shook his head. "No, it's perfect. I'll have the girls come up with what they want to auction off and have it to you by this afternoon." Kim watches his eye catch on something through the interior window. Then she noticed that the obnoxious music mix was no longer playing, signaling the end of cheer practice and the start of elite training. "Would you two excuse me?" he asked, but was gone before either of them could respond.

"We could always put him up for auction," Summer said, "I'm sure someone finds overbearing arrogance attractive."

"Summer," Kim began, the warning clear in her tone. She wasn't about to allow anyone to bad mouth the man who'd saved her daughter's career and in some ways, her life, but she was cut off.

"I'm sorry," Summer said, sniffling back the tears. "I'm sorry I said that and I'm so sorry, Kim. I had no right to try and keep the truth from you or from Payson. As much as I wanted to be, I'm not Lauren's mother. I don't know what I was thinking."

Kim bit her lip and sighed. Summer, despite her sometimes meddlesome ways, was always good intentioned and she could read the honesty and regret in her voice. Friends and allies were hard to come by in the world of international gymnastics and for better or worse, Summer van Horne was a part of that world. It was either get over it or risk the tension in the gym office spilling over onto the gym floor, which was unacceptable during an Olympic year, her daughter's _only_ Olympic year.

"Okay," Kim said, with a not, after allowing silence to reign long enough for Summer to start fidgeting uncomfortably. "Apology accepted."

"Really?" Summer said, sighing in relief, sending her a tentative and watery smile.

"Really," Kim confirmed, stepping closer to the younger woman and embracing her. "That's what friends do, they forgive each other, right?"

Summer pulled back, quickly nodding and wiping under her eyes. "Thank you," she said quietly. "These last few weeks, I've felt so lost. I've done a lot of thinking and even more praying and I still don't know…" There are no names mentioned, no details given, but Kim knew Summer was talking about Steve and Lauren and probably Sasha too.

Smiling tightly and nodding in understanding, Kim patted her shoulder. "Sometimes we have to stop worrying about direction and just live."

"It's that easy?" Summer asked.

Kim scoffed lightly. "It's not easy, but it works."

Summer sighed, but had no response, so Kim took a seat behind her desk. "C'mon we've got a lot of work to get done if we're going to put together a fundraiser in less than two weeks."

* * *

><p>An apartment, independence, moving out on her own, being away from her family after just getting her entire family under one roof again. Her father was just getting used to the idea of her taking endorsement money, helping to support their family while he looked for a job, to throw another variable into that equation didn't seem like a good idea.<p>

The thoughts were racing through her mind as she drove to the Rock that day. She hadn't mentioned Kelly's offer to her parents, but she'd tossed and turned all night and was still no closer to a decision. It was just one more thing on her already full plate, one more stress keeping her from focusing totally on her gymnastics.

Payson dug around in her bag as she opened the main door the Rock, searching for her cellphone. She found it quickly enough, but as she stepped into the gym, she realized she needn't have bothered with it. The music pumping through the sound system was enough to drown out someone screaming bloody murder; a cellphone's ring would not be noticed.

"Damn it," she scolded herself. She was so distracted by Kelly's offer the day before that she forgot today the gym would be invaded by local cheerleaders. Not just any local cheerleaders however, but the two time reigning regional champion cheer squad from Taft High School, which would have been her alma mater if not for Dr. Clijsters and her ground breaking surgery.

Determined to ignore them and let Tara do her job, Payson moved over toward the beam to stretch. She wanted to work on her floor routine first thing this morning, but it would have to wait. Looking around she realized she was once again first to arrive, no shock, but she wasn't overly early, the rest of the elite squad would be arriving soon.

"That was great, girls," Tara's voice echoed through the Rock as the music ended, over the excited squeaks from the girls celebrating a successful run through of their dance routine. "We'll add in the tumbling next week."

Payson perked up at her words. Maybe she'd be able to start on floor after all.

She pushed up out of her stretch and shook out her legs, moving towards Tara to ensure they no longer needed the main floor, when a voice she'd hoped to never hear again after her short-lived high school career echoed behind her.

"Hey, Back Brace Girl," her former high school nemesis called.

Rolling her eyes to the ceiling in a silent prayer for salvation, she turned and smiled tightly towards the former junior varsity cheer captain, who'd finally made varsity in her senior year. "Morgan," she said, "girls," she acknowledged the two minions whose names she'd never learned.

"Payson Keeler," Morgan said, smirking at her, "now that the brace is gone you decided to try that round off back handspring?"

Payson tilted her head in confusion, studying the other girl carefully. "I'm sorry, what?" she asked, wondering if the girl was either illiterate, totally unobservant or simply that much of an idiot. Her name was plastered all over the walls of the Rock, touting her junior national championship, her current world title, and several other accomplishments from over the years.

"You heard me. This place is for serious athletes," she said, her hands waving towards the other cheerleaders around her chatting and packing their bags. "What are you doing here?"

"I train here," Payson said, feeling the tension of the last few days along with several awful nights' sleep catching up to her and focusing upon Morgan.

Morgan laughed, rolling her eyes, "And what do _you_ train?"

Payson finally had enough, the tension and confusion of the last few weeks boiling over and landing on Morgan Webster. "You want to see what I train?" she snapped, her eyes flickering with enough intensity to have Morgan's two friends looking concerned. "Fine."

She unzipped her warm-up jacket and tossed it to the ground. She checked the floor, ensuring no one was in her way or likely to move into her path, before steadying herself with a deep breath. Three steps had her launching into a round-off, double flic flac, powering into the double layout she'd trained the last few days in the pit, landing solidly a foot or so from the white edge of the performance area. She spun on her toe and marched back to where she began.

Morgan was gaping at her like she'd grown another head and one of the minions was pointing out the banner on the wall which read, "Payson Keeler - 2011 World Champion." She opened her mouth to tell off the girl who'd made her two months of high school a living hell, but never got the chance.

"Payson!" Sasha's voice rang through the eerily silent gym.

Her eyes shot to him and she could see he was agitated, more than that he was furious. She allowed herself one more look of triumph at Morgan before moving towards Sasha, who was waiting for her none too patiently by the water cooler. She could see the anger in the set of his jaw and the tension in his body. She moved by him, silently asking him to follow her away from prying eyes.

She could feel him behind her as she moved towards the lockers, then taking a deep breath, just as she had before the tumbling pass, she turned to face him.

"What the hell were you thinking?" he shouted down at her. "You've never done that move out of the pit."

"I wasn't…I wasn't thinking," she managed, but he was clearly just building up his momentum and had hit his stride.

"Have you gone stark raving mad? Do you know what could have happened to you? Do you know how reckless that was?" he ran a hand through his hair and shook his head.

"I know," she shot back, feeling her own ire rising. "I know it was stupid, it's just, everything's been piling up all week and I just, I snapped. Is that what you wanted to hear? That it's affecting me? Well it is, okay? It's affecting me." Her voice was echoing off the walls and she hoped in the back of her mind that the gym was still virtually empty. Though no one would know what she was referring to, her meaning should have been abundantly clear to Sasha, but it seemed he was still focused on making his point.

"I knew you weren't ready for these skills. I don't know why I let you talk me into it. I shouldn't have." He shook his head in frustration.

"What are you talking about?" she felt her voice crack as she shouted up at him, stepping closer, pointing a finger into his chest. "Did you see that double layout? It was _perfect_. This is who I am, Sasha. I take risks. This is what I do. I push my limits and if you can't understand that then…" her voice lowered to a raspy whisper, "then…"

"Then what?" he asked, his breath ghosting over her forehead.

She hadn't realized just how close they were. The rapid rise and fall of his chest was matched by hers, their tempers cooling almost as quickly as they'd boiled over.

"Then what?" he repeated as she took a step closer, their bodies nearly brushing, her chin lifted defiantly towards him.

He leaned down, his mouth hovering over hers for a moment, then another. His lips ghosted over hers. Her eyes flickered closed, battling against the dizzying effect of his proximity. The calloused brush of his thumb over her cheek had her leaning closer, before she felt him deflate, exhaling shortly, resting his forehead against hers.

"I don't know what I would do if you got hurt again," he whispered against her temple.

She felt her breathing return to normal as she finally understood he wasn't angry, but terrified. "I'll be more careful. I promise," she said, her voice just as soft as his.

They stepped back together, much as they had just a few nights before at his apartment. The unspoken boundaries they'd set rebuilding themselves almost immediately.

He left her alone in the hallway to the locker room after several awkward, silent moments. Then finally with a deep breath she made her way back to the floor, immediately seeing Kelly warming up by the beam.

Her family was a major concern and she knew she wanted to cherish the time she had with them, but even taking that into consideration, the decision had just been made for her.

"I'm sorry, KP. I can't be your roommate," Payson said. "Maybe you should ask Kaylie," she suggested at KP's disappointed expression.

Kelly nodded and Payson sighed, glad to have that off her shoulders. She wanted to be with her family, but mostly she knew there was no way she could live just a few doors away from Sasha Belov.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **A huge, HUGE thank you to Sleeping_Rory who managed to jump start my muse in the last couple of days after I spent two weeks staring at blank pages with ZERO direction for this story. I've definitely got a path now and I'm so excited to hear what you guys think about this chapter and what you think will happen next! I have to tell you I'm really excited about what's coming and I hope you guys will be too. We've got auction insanity and then Vegas, the city of sin. It's going to be crazy! Don't forget to review!


	16. Chapter 16

She was being stupid and she knew it. Payson shook her head, lifting her fist again to knock on the door. She'd done so five times already, each time dropping her arm to her side and staring at the solid oak barrier. She'd gotten a strange look from a woman taking her dog out for a walk and the only thing that had her raising her fist again was the humiliation she would feel if she was still standing in the hallway when the woman returned.

Three quick raps against the wood, followed by the sound of footsteps approaching had her pulse quickening before the door opened wide, revealing a slightly disheveled Sasha on the other side.

They stood there for a moment in silence. Payson bit her lip and looked down at the hallway's carpeted floor.

Then finally, Sasha spoke. "Hey," he said, breathing the word through a sigh.

And somehow that small greeting broke through the wall they'd erected, which stood firm through nearly two weeks of training, since the morning he'd railed at her for attempting her new double layout not out of anger, but from sheer terror that she would injure herself again. Thirteen days later, though who was counting, and a simple 'hey' had them smiling at each other from over the threshold. It was wonderful and more than a little frustrating at the same time.

"Come in," he said, finally stepping back from the door and motioning into the apartment. "Excuse the mess. I'm in an ongoing fight with my laundry. It's winning."

Payson laughed, taking in the living room as he quickly gathered up pieces of clothing strewn about, tossing them into the laundry basket in the corner.

"Mom made stew and she forgot Becca was staying over at the Talbot's tonight for dinner. There were a ton of leftovers so she asked me to bring them over," she said, before the silence could grow between them and they descended into an awkward staring contest.

"Thanks," he said, taking the dish of food out of her hands, fingers laying over hers for just a moment before moving into the kitchen. She twisted her hands together tightly to keep herself from reaching out to him.

It was their longest conversation in a long time. Aside from a near complete lack of verbal communication, the last two weeks of training were a resounding success. Her beam and bars routine upgrades were locked down and her floor routine was getting closer. She knew it probably wouldn't be ready, at least in its final incarnation for the Vegas Invitational; she'd be going into the competition with a higher DOD than she had at Worlds. It would be a weekend to make a statement. She wasn't just the defending World Champion; she was the defending World Champion who had every intention of being Olympic Champion. She hadn't spent her time in a post-victory glow, resting on her laurels. She was getting better and would continue to do so.

"So I think we're going to have to leave the double layout out in Vegas," Sasha said, putting the dish into the microwave to warm it up.

Payson nodded, leaning against the kitchen doorframe. "I think so too," she agreed. "I just want to go in there and hit my routines. Go four for four, you know?"

Sasha snorted, turning to face her. "I'm not a reporter, Payson. I know you want to compete the double layout." He smirked at her in a way she could only describe as affectionate.

"Well, of course I do," she said with a smile and a shrug, "but it's not ready yet and I don't want to compete it unless it's ready. My only concern is not competing it until Nationals. I feel like that's leaving it a little late."

"It's the way the schedule works," he said, with a shrug.

"I guess," she said, her voice trailing off, the only sound in the kitchen that of the microwave heating his dinner.

"So how are you, Payson, really?" he asked, his eyes burning into hers, penetrating, not allowing her to misconstrue his question. He wanted to know how she was dealing with everything, with her sponsorship deals, with her teammates, with her family, with him.

She shrugged, feigning nonchalance. "Taking everything a day at a time. My agent Pete, he's set up some things for Vegas. He said he was going to call you to make sure none of it conflicted with anything. Everything else is…it just _is_, you know?"

Something flashed behind his eyes and she remembered that they were in similar situations, still finding their footing after the craziness of the last year. He matched her small smile of reassurance, but then turned as the microwave beeped at them.

"Do you want some?" he asked, as he grabbed himself a plate and some flatware.

"No thanks," she said, looking at his wall clock, seeing the time. "It's getting late. I should get going."

"Get a good night's sleep," he said, walking her towards the door. "Full day of training tomorrow and then setting up for the auction. Did you decide what you're auctioning off yet?"

"A gymnastics lesson," she said, rolling her eyes at herself. "I couldn't come up with anything else and besides I think it would be fun, teaching some little girl a new skill. Hopefully someone bids on it."

"A lesson with the all-around world champion," Sasha said, scoffing lightly. "It'll probably be the biggest draw of the night."

"Thanks," Payson said and relaxed as they finally made it to his door. She was proud of herself and proud of him too. No awkwardness, no stuttering and most importantly, nothing inappropriate to feel guilty about.

"See you tomorrow," he said, as he opened the door, leading against the edge, his shoulder nearly brushing against her as she moved by him.

"Good –"

Payson stopped as the doorway was blocked by a tiny brunette, a broken fly swatter clutched pathetically in her hand.

"Sasha," KP said, looking over her shoulder as if something was following her. "There's this gigantic beetle bug thing in my apartment and I hit it with this useless piece of crap and now it disappeared and I need you to come kill it, like now…Payson?" Kelly said as she turned back towards the open doorway, her jaw dropping in shocked silence.

"I was just dropping off some dinner for Sasha," Payson explained as clearly as she could, cutting off whatever suggestion Kelly was about to make about their relationship.

"You were saying something about a bug, Kelly?" Sasha asked, running a hand over his face, eyes closed against the tension headache that was likely forming rapidly.

"Huge, giant, mutant thing," Kelly explained as they both followed her back to her apartment. "It broke my fly swatter. I mean it was like a bug on steroids."

The bug was waiting for them near Kelly's entryway, a big mistake as Sasha's heavy booted foot ended its existence rather quickly.

"Good night, ladies. Long week coming up, get a full ten hours tonight," he said.

"Night Sasha," they echoed together.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Kelly whirled on Payson. "What are you…oh my God are you two…" she began to ramble.

Payson cut her off sharply. "I was dropping off dinner."

"So dropping off dinner isn't like a euphemism for…?" Kelly asked, narrowing her eyes and pursing her lips.

Payson's eyes grew wide at the insinuation. "He's hopeless in the kitchen and he likes my mom's cooking," she protested, managing to look offended by the suggestion.

Kelly just carried on, ignoring her denial. "No judgment if it is. He's not my type, but I get the attraction. I'm just surprised he's _your_ type. I always figured you'd want to wear the pants in the relationship, which was why the whole thing with Max made sense, but with Sasha? There's no doubt he'd be the one in charge."

Kelly was rambling now, clearly talking more to herself than to Payson. She fought down the blush that was threatening to rise in her cheeks at the idea of Sasha being in charge of anything other than her gymnastics and shook her head.

"It's not like that," she insisted, though Kelly rolled her eyes clearly still skeptical. "It's not. Sasha and I are close," Payson admitted, giving in a little, but not nearly ready to admit the truth. "Maybe closer than we should be, but it's just…we've been through a lot together."

"You know how it looks though, right?" Kelly asked, quietly. "After that picture and then him leaving and you convincing him to come back. I mean I know Lauren and Emily went too, but everyone knows it was you who got him back coaching. You know what people think isn't going to change if you guys stay _close_."

Payson rolled her eyes. "If I cared what people thought of me a lot of things would be different, Kelly, the least of which is my relationship with Sasha. If I really cared about that crap I would have stopped training with him a long time ago."

Kelly watched her carefully, obviously looking for the lie in her words, but she'd spoken the truth. "Okay," she said finally.

"So, your apartment is infested with bugs?" Payson asked, hoping to change the subject.

"No, this one followed me in when I got home from my meeting with MJ," Kelly explained. "So gross."

"How'd that go?"

"Pretty well. It's going to be nice to have someone represent me who isn't my mother. She's got some things planned for when we go to Vegas." Kelly shrugged, obviously not all that interested in the subject. "So what do you think of the place?"

"It looks great, Kel," Payson said, looking around at the tastefully chic apartment decor. "I particularly like the shrine to you over there in the corner," she said, smirking at the full trophy case.

"You could still have your own in the other corner if you want," Kelly wheedled.

Payson shook her head more at herself than Kelly. A large part of her, the part she'd managed to control just a few minutes ago, the part that wanted to be as close to Sasha as possible was dying to say yes, but she knew it just wasn't a good idea. "I just got my family all under the same roof again. I can't do it."

Kelly pouted and huffed in frustration. "Living alone sucks. I swear I nearly had a heart attack when that bug was in here. I hate creepy crawlies. And there's no one for company around here except Sasha and I really would rather not hang out with my coach, no offense."

"None taken," Payson said. "I don't know why you don't just ask Kaylie. She's been bouncing back and forth between her dad and her mom for months now and half the time whichever parent she's with is away on business. You guys get along, I don't see the problem."

Kelly looked away, clearly a little uncomfortable with the idea and Payson tilted her head, wondering what it meant.

"Maybe I will," KP said finally.

"Good," Payson said. "I should get going. We really do have a long couple of days ahead of us and then Vegas."

"I can't wait," Kelly sighed contentedly, flopping down onto her sofa dramatically. "The shopping is going to be amazing."

Payson smiled as she let herself out. "Night KP," she said and shut the door behind her firmly. She stood in the hallway for a moment, staring diagonally across the hall at Sasha's door. Just a few steps, it would be so easy. "Stop it," she muttered to herself as she forced her feet to take one step and then another towards the parking lot, the familiar ache which she'd managed to ignore for the last couple of weeks settling back into her chest.

* * *

><p>"I'm counting on you girls tonight to work the room, talk up your auction items to our invitees. Your Dad and the Cruzes managed to put together a pretty affluent guest list. Almost all of the Rock families are coming as well. We shouldn't have any trouble, but I don't want to take any chances," Summer said to Lauren as they stood in the gym office looking at the gorgeous purple and red centerpieces that were just delivered.<p>

"We've got it covered, Summer, don't worry about it," Lauren said, following her out the door and down the stairs onto the main floor.

"Great. Everyone needs to be back here at six to help set up and to greet our guests," Summer said, eyeing Lauren and the other three elite girls who'd gathered near the stairs sharply. They all nodded in affirmation. "Before you go I just want to confirm your auction experiences. Payson, one on one gymnastics lessons?"

"Yep, just me and some tumble tot learning back walkovers," Payson said with a smile.

"And Kelly, a spa day with you and items from your cosmetics line?"

"Over two hundred dollars in cosmetics," Kelly said and Summer nodded, jotting it down.

"Lauren, you'll be designing a custom leotard with your winner. Then a photoshoot with the finish products?"

"Yep, GK gave me access to all kinds of new custom fabrics and styles. It's going to rock."

"And Kaylie, a shopping spree at DeLuca's Boutique with you as the personal shopper and where's Austin?" she asked, looking around for the tall gold medalist.

"I can confirm his, he's sticking with the 'win a date with Austin Tucker' idea," Kaylie said, rolling her eyes. "I swear he better get some ten year old who wants to go see the Smurfs."

Summer nodded. "Thanks ladies, now you all better get home and start getting ready. Remember I need you here..."

"At six, we know, Summer. Don't worry," Lauren reassured her with a smile, but Summer's gaze had drifted across the gym.

"Oh! That's not in the right spot. I'll see you girls at six," Summer said as she took off across the gym, shouting instructions to the crew setting up the stage and nearly killing herself trying to balance on her heels across the plush mats.

"I think her head might explode," Kaylie muttered, digging around for her car keys. Payson and Kelly both hummed in agreement.

"She just wants to make sure tonight is a success," Lauren said, defending Summer's high strung attitude. "And she gets nervous when she has to speak in public."

"You're all still coming to my place to get ready, right?" Kelly asked, checking the time.

"Yeah," Payson said, the other two girls nodding. "We better get going if we want to get back here by six."

"I'll meet you guys there okay?" Lauren said, "I have to talk to Summer about something."

Her teammates left and Lauren looked around. Most of the gym equipment was already gone, making way for tables and chairs, two bars, a buffet table and a stage, a similar set up to the annual Rocky Awards. Sasha hadn't been happy when the crew invaded a full two hours before the end of scheduled training. He'd made his displeasure known, but it looked the crew would need every second of time between now and the start of the party if they continued at this pace.

Summer was near the far wall asking the workers to add an extra layer of gossamer against it so it would cover the steel garage door.

She approached slowly. "It looks nice, the red and purple," she commented, nodding towards the long streamers and bunting.

"I thought the Rock colors would be the most appropriate," Summer said, "since we're raising money for our club and not for an international competition. I think we might raise enough to cover all eight of you, plus the junior girls' regional meets as well."

"That's great," Lauren said.

"Shouldn't you be headed over to Kelly's apartment?" Summer asked, furrowing her brow. "I thought you girls were getting ready there."

"We are." Lauren nodded. "I just wanted to ask, are you going to wear that black dress you bought the other day tonight?"

Summer blinked. "I'm not sure. It might be a little risqué for tonight, Lauren. I still can't believe you talked me into buying it."

"Please, you look great in it and remember the auction is to raise money, all those rich business guys Daddy and Mr. Cruz invited will be much more likely to bid if the host looks smokin' hot. I bet Sasha will think it looks great too," she added with a grin.

"Lauren," Summer said with a rueful smile.

"Don't even try to deny it," Lauren said, clapping her hands together lightly in victory. "I know you still have feelings for him and tonight is the perfect opportunity to, you know…" she trailed off, smiling knowingly.

Summer eyed her. "No, Lauren, I'm afraid I don't know."

"You're going to look so gorgeous in that dress. He won't know what hit him. You'll be working together all night hosting. I just don't think you should let this chance slip away," she said, looking at Summer imploringly. Summer just shook her head again, but the smile grew. "See! I knew it."

"Go get ready for the party. You need to be back here in two hours," Summer said, changing the subject, but all Lauren could think was, mission accomplished.

"See you later," she sang, swinging her gym bag onto her shoulder and skipping lightly out to her car.

* * *

><p>"I can't wait for Austin to see my dress." Kaylie said, examining her reflection from all angles in the stand-alone mirror in the corner of Kelly's bedroom. Her little black dress was sleek and sophisticated on top and frilly and girly on the bottom. It fit her personality perfectly.<p>

"And Max to see me in mine. He is going to go wild and bid like crazy to win me," Lauren said, with a wicked grin, raising her eyebrows suggestively.

"I swear," Payson interrupted. "You guys could be sisters," she said, looking back and forth between Kaylie and Kelly. Lauren frowned, but had to agree. Not only did her best friend and Kelly Parker share similar coloring and body types, but tonight their outfits looked almost coordinated, Kelly's blue dress and black belt a reflection of Kaylie's black dress and thick blue headband.

"We totally didn't plan it," Kaylie said, laughing.

"Great minds think alike," Kelly added.

Lauren frowned, feeling left out, she changed the subject quickly. "Did you talk to Austin about bidding on you?"

"For me to be his personal shopper at DeLuca's Boutique, where they sell women's clothes?" Kaylie asked, laughingly. "As far as I know he isn't into cross dressing." The girls all giggled at the thought of Austin prancing around in a dress. "Besides, that's kind of cheating, isn't it?"

"Yeah, there are a lot of people coming tonight. It sort of defeats the purpose of a fundraiser if your boyfriend bids for you," Payson said, buckling a large brown belt, cinching her uncharacteristically girly dress in at the waist.

Primarily pink, it set off her naturally creamy complexion and showed off her long legs. Those long legs sometimes prevented her from executing a power gymnastics move, but Lauren couldn't help the small pang of jealously at her friend's height compared to own meager, five feet one inch. Those three extra inches did wonders for Payson, especially in a short dress.

"You only feel that way because you don't have a boyfriend to bid on you," Lauren shot back as that envy bubbled to the surface. She took in her own reflection again and smiled. Her dress was a champagne color, mostly lace with a plunging neckline that was sure to get Max's attention.

Payson sent her a withering look through the mirror hanging over Kelly's dresser. The uncomfortable, but unspoken truth that Payson would have a boyfriend, _her boyfriend_, if she hadn't dumped him, had Lauren looking away, smoothing down the line of her dress, which hugged her hips tightly.

"Kaylie said it first and she has a boyfriend," Kelly said, breaking the tension, adjusting the black belt of her blue one sleeve dress. "Besides, what exactly is Max going to do with the custom leotard you two will design together when he wins?"

"He's not going to wear it, is he?" Kaylie asked, horrified.

"Two words: bikini wax," Kelly said.

Kaylie and Kelly laughed at their little joke and Payson snorted her amusement lightly.

"Whatever," Lauren said. "Even if he doesn't bid, my custom leo design session will totally bring in more money than your stupid little mani/pedi."

Lauren smirked as both Kaylie and Payson looked to Kelly.

"Oh, you are _so_ on," KP said, eyes lighting up at the challenge. "Fair is fair though. No boyfriends or friends driving up the price."

Making a mental note to warn off Max, she said, "Fine. Loser is winner's slave for a day."

Kelly rolled her eyes to the ceiling and laughed. "You do realize you are like the least original person on the face of the Earth, right?" Payson elbowed KP hard and Lauren smirked, as Kelly grunted in protest. "Ow, you have pointy elbows, Pay."

"Sorry, muscle spasm," Payson deadpanned. Lauren smiled at her and Payson gave her a small one in return. Baby steps, Lauren thought.

"Wait, I've got it," Kaylie said. "When we're in Vegas, the loser has to introduce themselves to people with 'I won a gold medal at Worlds' after it."

Payson snorted. "Like when we meet with sponsors, 'I'm Lauren Tanner and I won a gold medal at Worlds?'"

"You mean, 'I'm Kelly Parker and I won a gold medal at Worlds'," Lauren corrected, glaring at Payson. One step forward, two steps back. She knew Payson was still angry, but that didn't mean she should be siding with KP on anything, ever. "Not that it would be all that different from before," she added.

Kelly yawned mockingly. "Ancient history, but that is a brilliant idea, Kay."

"And when someone else does it too, like if you get introduced to a coach or another gymnast," Kaylie added, giggling and breaking the tension.

Lauren laughed. She had this bet in the bag. She'd trained at the Rock forever. She knew there were dozens of little girls who idolized her whose parents were attending the auction tonight. Kelly Parker had no chance.

"We do it no matter what, TV, radio, podcast, in front of a hundred people, it doesn't mater how embarrassing the situation is, for the _entire_ time we're in Vegas." There would be dozens, maybe even hundreds of introductions at the invitational. It was a huge NGO event.

"I think we have a bet," Kelly said, extending her hand, looking far more confident than she had any right to be. "A Spa Day with Kelly Parker versus Design a Custom Leo with Lauren Tanner, highest bid wins."

Lauren took her hand shaking it firmly. "Deal."

"So, Kaylie, when are you going to move in?" Payon asked, as she brushed out her hair.

"Move in where? Is your dad moving _again_?" Lauren asked. Kaylie's mother had kept the house in the divorce, but Mr. Cruz had bounced around between several apartments and condos before settling in a lake house just a few houses away from Austin.

Kaylie sent a glare at Payson, who shrugged apologetically, then bit her lip, suddenly looking uncomfortable. "No, umm, actually, Kelly asked me to move in here," she said quietly.

Lauren, who was applying her liquid eyeliner liberally, nearly poked herself in the eye. "You're moving in here?" she asked, shock coursing through her, before being replaced by outrage. What the hell was her best friend doing moving in with Kelly Parker?

"It totally sucked having this place all to myself and since Kaylie's parents are like never home, I figured she might want to bunk with me," Kelly said, lightly, though Lauren could practically see the victory in the former national and world champion's eyes.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at Kelly, but then looking to Kaylie imploringly.

"She just asked, like ten minutes before you got here," Kaylie said, fidgeting uncomfortably, shifting her weight back and forth.

"Wow, that's huge, Kay," she managed to say, biting back her instinct to lash out.

"Yeah, it's going to be great. Total independence from the Crazy Cruz family," Kaylie said, in a self deprecating way.

Lauren's mind was running a mile a minute. This wasn't good. After the fallout from her confession to Payson she thought there'd been a line drawn with her and Kaylie on one side, Payson and Kelly on the other. At the time it felt like a miracle. She knew how badly she screwed up by sending that tape in, but Kaylie stood by her, like a best friend should. Then the line blurred a little once she and Payson agreed to be civil. Now it seemed Kelly was pulling Kaylie away from her. If she wasn't careful, she'd end up alone, _again_.

Her mind was still reeling as they made their way out of the apartment. Kaylie was regaling them with a story on how she managed to talk Austin out of wearing his sunglasses to the indoor, evening party, when Payson who'd been leading their group down the hallway came to a full stop.

"Ladies," Sasha's voice echoed through the hall, followed by the rough clearing of his throat.

They moved up next to Payson, taking up the entire hallway outside Sasha's door.

"You all look lovely," he managed to add, his eyes flickering quickly over each of them, though she saw his gaze narrow slightly when they landed on her. Maybe her dress was a little low cut and a teensy bit short, but it wasn't Sasha's place to disapprove. She broke eye contact deliberately and then inspiration struck.

"Shall we?" he asked, waving his hand towards the exit.

They all started together towards the parking lot, silence reigning. Lauren grinned to herself. It was like the universe wanted this to happen, like God had a plan to reunite two of the most important people in her life.

"Sasha," she said, taking two quick steps to every one of his. "I can't wait for you to see the dress I helped Summer pick out," she said. "There are going to be lots of eligible men there tonight, so you better reserve a dance early." Maybe it wasn't subtle, but she knew Summer was on board, so if she had to give Sasha a little push why not?

Payson, who was walking just ahead of her obviously didn't agree, as she let out a small sound of protest, before turning and glaring at her. Lauren just rolled her eyes. Payson's old man crush was really pretty pathetic.

Lauren soldiered on, despite Payson's obvious objection. "I know she's really looking forward to hosting with you. She told me so earlier today. You guys did such a great job at the Rocky Awards last year."

"Along with my mom," Payson added tightly and Lauren rolled her eyes again.

Sasha's total lack of response plunged them into awkwardness and Lauren smiled widely to try and combat it. "Right," he said, shaking his head and running a hand through his hair, effectively destroying whatever effort he'd put into it. "I suppose we all better be going. I believe we're supposed to be there at six and it's quarter til."

"Good idea," Payson said. "Who's coming with me?" she asked, dangling her car keys in the air.

"I am," Kelly said, as their group stopped in front of Payson's Audi. That was just fine with Lauren, as she and Kaylie moved further down the strip of parking spots.

"Wow, Lo. That was pretty blunt," Kaylie said, stopping when they reached her car.

"What?" Lauren said. "It's so stupid. They're being ridiculous. Sasha and Summer love each other, so they should be together."

Kaylie nodded, looking back to where Sasha was leaning against the grill of his car, watching Payson's Audi disappear out of the parking lot. "I guess so," Kaylie said with a shrug.

Lauren scoffed. "I know so."

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Okay, so first things first, I have to give credit to my favorite television show of all time, _The West Wing_ for the terms of KP and Lauren's bet. That bet is going to cause all kinds of trouble once they get to Vegas.

Again to my writing buddy, Sleeping_Rory, without whom this chapter would just be terrible. No exaggeration. If you haven't yet read her amazing story, At the Edge, go do it now. You won't be sorry.

I hope you all enjoyed this. The last secton from Lauren's point of view really kicked my ass, as Lauren's point of view always does, so I'd love to hear you comments on that, as well as the rest of the chapter! Our favorite couple has managed to…well…ignore I guess would be the right word, what's going on between them, but for how much longer?

Oh and last but not least, you can see the girls' dresses (and Summer's too) linked in my profile.

Thanks for reading!


	17. Chapter 17

The Rock was different at night.

Payson once accompanied her parents to an open house at the last school she attended in Minnesota and was stunned by how different school was after the sun went down, empty, ominous, almost frightening. That same feeling would bubble to the surface every time the Rock held an event that had more to do with food and music than gym chalk and degree of difficulty. She stood by her car for a moment and looked up at her banner. It was over the door, next to Austin's, Kaylie's more modest sized one a few feet to the right.

"Maybe I should take mine down," Kelly mused from the other side of the car.

Payson's eyes flickered left, where the banner Kelly's mother insisted upon before World's still hung. _Kelly Parker World Champion _it read, in a very girly script, highlighted by stars and glitter. The banner really wasn't Kelly's style at all.

She shrugged. "You are still a World Champion," she said, then not being able to resist, "_former_ World Champion."

"Ha, ha, Keeler, you know what I mean," Kelly said and then shook her head, brown curls brushing against her bare shoulders. "Let's go inside, it's freezing."

"If you think this is cold, you should come to Minnesota with me," Payson said, but Kelly was already halfway to the door of the gym.

Looking up at the banner one more time before shaking her head, Payson grabbed her purse and then shut the car door. The roar of an approaching engine had her leaping onto the sidewalk. Sasha's silver truck pulled in. For a moment the garish headlights blinded her, then he killed the engine. Their eyes met through the windshield.

Before she could even consider what she wanted to say, he was out of the truck and standing before her looking just as good as he had in the hallway of the apartment building. Taking her bottom lip between her teeth she looked up at him and smiled.

Sasha blinked and shoving his hands in his pockets, smiled back. "You look…" he trailed off, clearing his throat and glancing away from her. "You look very pretty tonight, Payson."

Suddenly uncomfortable in her short dress, one she'd been hesitant to buy in the first place, she struggled to meet his eye. "You said that earlier," she managed, flinching at her inability to simply thank him for the compliment.

A bark of laughter pushed out from Sasha's throat. "No, I didn't," he argued, though his tone wasn't the least bit serious. "I would remember telling you how beautiful you look. That dress is…." Words obviously failed him as he ran a hand through his hair and then pulled at the knot of his tie. Payson wondered how long it would be before the jacket and tie were gone and the top button of his shirt undone. Formal attire was a concept Sasha was familiar with, but rarely maintained throughout an entire evening.

His words ceased, but his eyes were still trained upon her. Her skin tingled under the gaze, as it darted from her face to the neckline down towards the high hem. The dress itself wrapped around her, held by a clasp at the waist, so the line was slightly uneven over her thighs. Kelly called the dress a tease and mocked her a little for it as they got ready, but Payson just liked how the silk felt against her skin. Now, she regretted the choice entirely. If she'd known it would provoke this sort of reaction from him she never would have worn it. It was bad enough knowing they felt this pull towards each other, but why did he have to look at her that way when they both knew they couldn't do anything about it.

Desperate to break the tension, Payson took a deep breath and plastered on a smile. "We should go inside," she said, just as the headlights of another car, likely Kaylie and Lauren, approached from down the street.

"Right," he said, pressing his lips together in a small grin. "Shall we?" His hand gestured forward and Payson knew as she turned towards the door that she'd feel his hand brushing against the small of her back. Approaching the door, a deep thrum of heat spread through her as his hand didn't simply ghost over her, but pressed firmly as he held the door open for her. She could feel the pads of his fingers catching against the smooth silk of the dress as they moved towards the second door.

He reached for the handle, but the door opened widely, Summer looking more than a little frazzled, on the other side.

"There you are," she said, glancing at her clipboard, "where are Lauren and Kaylie?" she asked Payson.

"Oh um," she said as Sasha's hand fell to his side and she slid a half step away from him. "They were right behind us."

"Great," Summer said, sarcasm biting into her tone. "People have already started to arrive and I wanted everyone here to greet them. Payson, why don't you find Lauren and Kaylie? Sasha, I need you to come talk to the DJ, there are a few songs that I don't want him to play tonight…"

Payson watched as she led Sasha away. She could still feel the warmth of his hand against her. She sighed and turned to go back outside. Austin and Kaylie were standing just in front of his car, indulging in a pre-party kiss. Lauren and Max were pressed up against the back passenger door of his Range Rover, totally oblivious to her approach.

Rolling her eyes and shaking her head, she turned back to into the Rock. Summer could deal with them herself.

The speakers were already blasting music when she entered the main gym. The lights were dimmed, the harsh fluorescent lighting necessary during training hours replaced by just the recessed lighting high in the rafters, creating a certain amount of intimacy and atmosphere in the otherwise airplane hanger like space. A large screen was mounted on the far wall playing highlights of the last few years at the Rock, both in competition and training footage, showcasing the hard work they put in on a daily basis and the phenomenal results they'd achieved.

A smile crept across her face as her much younger self tumbled across the screen in the final tumbling pass that won her second junior national championship, a double twisting, double back landing lightly on two feet. It was like yesterday, that feeling of invincibility, flying through the air, and then the elation of victory. That little girl, a year too young for Beijing, was already dreaming of London. Comparisons to Shawn Johnson were rampant at those junior nationals. If anyone told that tiny little fire bolt of energy she'd be going to London without her double twisting double back, but instead the precision, grace and artistry of a ballerina she never would have believed it.

"Is that you?" a voice asked from just over her shoulder. She turned and saw a familiar face, but one she hadn't expected to see again.

"It is," she said, smiling tightly at Scott Lago, Olympic snowboarder and Austin's friend. "Scott, right?" she asked, though she knew it was him.

"Yeah, you remembered," he marveled, "even though you didn't give Austin the okay to give me your number." She opened her mouth, though what excuse she was going to give was beyond her. "Hey, it's okay, I get it. He said you're totally dedicated to the sport, I can respect that."

"Thanks," she said, her smile becoming more genuine.

"Huh and I thought I was a tough guy, you gymnasts make snowboarders look like total pussies," he said, still watching the video montage which had moved on to footage of Lauren's beam routine.

She flinched a little at his word choice and shrugged. "I don't know, you guys take falls all the time."

"Yeah, but we land in snow, not on hard mats," he said. "I mean one little slip and splat."

She blinked and she was in Boston, swinging up from the low bar to the high, the Shaposhnikova, the move she was working on adding a half twist to now, her fingers grasping the bar, her back seizing and then nothing; waking up in a hospital bed, being told she should be happy she could feel her legs, no more gymnastics, no more dream.

She shook her head, attempting to clear the negative thoughts. Tonight might be about relaxing and having a good time, but they had a competition in two days. She needed to stay focused and uninhibited by fear. She didn't blame Scott, he probably had no idea, but she wanted to get away and as quickly as possible.

"Total bad asses, all of you." Apparently, he was still talking.

"Thanks," she said, looking around and spotting Kelly across the floor, making looking bored an art form, "if you'll excuse me for a second, there's some one I have to say hello to."

"Oh, okay," Scott said. "See you later for the auction," he called, as she spun on the toe of her high heel and made a beeline for Kelly.

"I'm begging you, please, just talk to me," she said, drawing Kelly's attention and a small laugh.

"What's the matter?" Kelly said, looking over her shoulder. "Ah, who's the guy shooting some major kicked puppy faces in this direction?"

Payson groaned softly, dropping her head into her hand. "Scott Lago. Remind me to kill Austin, later. Why would he invite him?" Payson said, huffing and crossing her arms over her chest in frustration.

"Who?" Kelly asked, refocusing on Payson. "Forget it, I don't care. Did you know that Summer told the DJ he's not allowed to play any Rhianna or Ke$ha? _Take It Off_ is totally my jam and I requested it, but apparently it's just too dirty."

Payson snorted, pleasantly distracted from the freak flashback of just moments earlier. "I like that song too."

"I know! It's a great song and besides, there's supposed to be dancing and how are we supposed to dance to _this_," Kelly said, wrinkling her nose at the music. "What is it exactly that we're listening to?"

"Gary Puckett and the Union Gap," Payson supplied, rolling her eyes. "My mother _loves _them. I'm sure that was one of her suggestions."

Kelly snorted. "Aside from the awful music, however, Summer did do one thing right. I'm being auctioned off _after _Lauren."

"That's great, KP," she said, slowly, not entirely sure why it was so great.

"You don't get it," Kelly said, rolling her eyes, stating the obvious. "Auction prices tend to go up as the auction goes on, excitement builds and people get into bidding. Kaylie's already gone for five hundred dollars. I so want to break a thousand and I can't wait until she has to say it in front of a camera. It's going to be _classic_."

Payson smiled. She had to admit, she was rooting for Kelly to win that bet. It wouldn't hurt Lauren to be taken down a notch or two. She also couldn't wait to see the look on Marcus McGowan's face the first time Lauren introduced herself to a reporter in Vegas. The NGO's top PR man might go into apoplexy.

"Payson," a voice called from behind her.

"Hmm, the guys are just flocking to you tonight, Keeler," Kelly said, eyes focused over Payson's shoulder at whoever was approaching.

Payson rolled her eyes, recognizing the voice. She turned. "Hey Pete," she said, as her agent approached, kissing her lightly on the cheek. "I didn't know you were going to be here tonight."

Pete Carlisle was one of the premier young agents in the business, specializing in Olympic and Extreme Sports. He'd done a great job with her post-Worlds endorsement deals if the amounts deposited into her bank account were any indication.

"Had to fly in last minute for another client and thought I'd stop by. You look great tonight, by the way. I guess some of those stylists managed to rub off on you," Peter said, looking over her shoulder. "Hi, Pete Carlisle," he said, extending a hand towards Kelly.

"Kelly Parker," KP said, grinning. "MJ's told me a lot about you."

Peter snorted and shot both girls a cocky grin. "I bet she did," he said. "Payson, would you mind coming with me, there are a few people I'd like to introduce you to, some local reps from Cover Girl are here."

She sighed heavily. "If you insist," she said, though already willing to be lead away. Her father hadn't had much luck finding a job in Boulder, so another endorsement would only help.

"I do insist," he said, his hand falling to the small of her back as he led her towards two women in their early thirties dressed more for business than pleasure, but looking excited to meet her.

She could feel his eyes on her from across the room. As casually as she could she glanced back over her shoulder. His gaze was trained on her or rather on Pete's hand. The frown was deep set and had her looking away immediately feeling almost guilty.

The guilt was quickly overcome by curiosity and she looked again. He was standing with Summer, a half drunk pint of dark liquid in his hand. Summer was speaking enthusiastically about something, eyes shining up at him, the attraction obvious. Sasha's eyes, however, were trained just over her head, still glaring at Pete's hand, a completely innocent gesture on her agent's part. Simple politeness. A jolt of pleasure coursed through her at the thought of him being jealous, but then she saw Summer take a step closer and Sasha bend his head to hear whatever it was the older woman was saying, though his eyes flickered back to her once and then twice and held, taking another long sip from his drink.

She huffed a breath and looked away, trying to find something else to focus on, his gaze still burning through her skin. She studied her feet, watching the black peep toe pumps leading her towards the two reps.

"_Smile_," Pete muttered. She looked up, tossing her hair back over her shoulder and plastered on a media darling grin.

Twenty minutes later she walked away, a genuine smile on her face. As they'd talked she distantly heard Lauren auctioned off for nearly seven hundred dollars and that number had stuck in her head until the Cover Girl rep had said something about two million dollars and they had her full attention.

The party was in full swing now, even those who arrived fashionably late milling around, some people dancing, and a cheerful buzz of conversation floating up over the music.

She needed a place to just get her bearings again. A one-year contract for two million dollars, renewable after the Olympics for five million. She'd done well after winning at Worlds, but that kind of money was life changing. Moving away from the crowd towards the locker rooms she kept breathing deeply. She hadn't expected anything like this tonight and it was throwing her for a loop. Sitting down on a bench she wound her fingers together tightly.

"I just can't believe this is happening. She's supposed to be _my_ best friend," Lauren's voice echoed off the metal lockers and tile floor of the women's changing room.

"I don't think it has anything to do with you," Max's voice responded, though she wouldn't call his tone consoling.

Lauren scoffed. "Please, of course it does. She's moving in with that bitch and…"

"Hey, I like KP," Max said, "she's a cool chick."

"She's a complete and total bitch and you're supposed to be on my side," Lauren complained. "Kaylie is my best friend and I feel like I'm losing her, not that you care at all."

"Of course I care," Max said, sounding more frustrated than apologetic, "but…"

Payson didn't stick around to find out the caveat of Max's reply. She stood up and left the locker room as quickly and quietly as she could, trying not to let her heels click against the tile floor. The last thing she needed was to listen to Lauren whine and complain to Max. Max was her boyfriend; it was his job.

The universe was apparently conspiring against her, however. Just as she left the locker room, turning the corner around the stairs to the gym office, she nearly ran headlong into Summer who was standing even closer to Sasha than she was earlier, hand on his forearm. Sasha's jacket was gone, as well as his tie, top button unfastened, as she predicted.

"Payson," Sasha said, blinking at her in shock, the guilt easily apparent in his expression and body language, his eyes narrowing, his mouth setting itself in a firm line, the half step he took backwards away from Summer.

She tried to play it as cool as possible. "Sorry, I didn't see you there," she said, grinning.

Summer finally turned to face her, eyes wide, like a deer caught in the headlights. "We were just talking about the auction," Summer said, smiling, and perhaps trying to convince herself more than Payson. "You're up soon, aren't you?"

Payson checked her watch, a gift from Longines, one of the first sponsors Pete brought in. "In about twenty minutes," she said, smiling.

Sasha remained silent, though she noticed his glass was nearly full again. He seemed to be well on his way to being pleasantly numb. Lucky him.

"Great," Summer said, "that's great. I'm sure you're really excited, a gymnastics lesson with the World Champion, some little girl is going to be very lucky," Summer rambled. "Oh, I should go talk to the auctioneer, see if I can get an estimate of how much we've raised so far."

Payson and Sasha stood in silence as they watched her walk away. She found herself studying the other woman's dress, a short, black number, low cut, not really Summer's usual style and she vaguely remembered Lauren mentioning something about picking out the dress. Suddenly it was crystal clear to Payson why Summer wore something so totally different. She glanced up at the reason, his grey eyes still trained upon her.

"It wasn't," he began.

She didn't want to her it. Whatever words he planned to utter would simply hurt too much. "Don't," she said softly, "please just _don't_."

His eyes finally left her, glancing away unseeingly into the crowd of people. Mouth twisting into a grimace, he nodded. "Right then," he said, shoving his hands in his pockets and walking away. It didn't escape her notice that the path he took him back to Summer's side or that he took a long draught from his glass, draining nearly half of it in one sip.

She pressed into the crowd of people, towards the stage. Then her shoulder violently bumped into someone else sending her stumbling sideways, only to have strong hands catch her about the waist.

"Sorry," a young man she didn't know said, turning, but obviously relieved that she'd been caught. He returned to his conversation and Payson looked up at her rescuer.

"I thought you were a bad ass, Payson Keeler, but if you can't even balance on stilettos how can I believe you do it on a beam?" Scott said, helping her stand, but keeping his hands around her waist, thumbs resting just above her belt, precariously close to what he should consider forbidden territory.

"Thanks," she said, rolling her eyes at herself. "I was just…in a hurry," she finished lamely.

"Obviously," he agreed. "In a hurry to get away from…" he trailed off, his eyes flickering across the room towards Sasha. Payson opened her mouth to protest, but was interrupted.

"You two know each other?"

Payson looked up to see Morgan Webster, hands on her hips, wrapped in a tiny dress, looking extraordinarily put out. Payson took a step back and Scott's hands fell away from her.

"We have a mutual friend," Scott answered for her.

"Oh," Morgan said, seemingly mollified by the information.

"How do you two know each other?" Payson asked, looking between the high school cheerleader and the Olympic snowboarder. She couldn't imagine they ran in the same circles.

"We don't, we just met, but we were getting to know each other," Morgan said, smirking at Scott, who raised his eyebrows at the suggestion in her tone.

"Right," Payson said, rolling her eyes, "_obviously_."

Scott snorted his amusement and Morgan fumed. She opened her mouth to retort, but Payson didn't let her.

"Scott, do you want to dance?" she asked, smiling at him prettily. Morgan's jaw dropped in shock.

The snowboarder, despite evidence to the contrary, wasn't an idiot. His eyes narrowed just a little bit, but he nodded. "Yeah," he said, offering his hand, she took it with no hesitation and let him lead her into the mass of people dancing.

"This DJ might be the worst ever," Scott said, spinning her quickly and pulling her closer as the music shifted to, _Rock Me Gently, _a one hit wonder for obvious reasons.

With the sounds of bad seventies pop echoing in her ears Payson laughed. "He's really awful," she agreed.

"So," Scott said, eyeing her carefully, "want to make him jealous?"

"What?" Payson said, her smile fading a little. "I don't know what…"

"Sure you do," he said, laughing at her denial. Payson bit her lip and looked up apologetically, but it was obvious he wasn't offended. "So, what? You have a fight or something?"

"Or something," she agreed, not elaborating. "He's not…we're not…it's complicated. Were we that obvious?"

"Nah," he said, but she frowned dubiously. "Really, it's just I haven't taken my eyes off you all night. You do know how beautiful you look, right?"

"Thank you," she said, the smile creeping up involuntarily.

"Ah and there it is," Scott said, huffing a breath through his cheeks. "You should be careful where you point that thing, you could cause major pile ups on a highway or you know, fist fights at a charity auction," he said, lowering his voice and leaning down to whisper in her ear, before spinning her around so she could see Sasha over his shoulder. The glass in his hand was smaller now, but despite her own inexperience with alcohol, she knew the smaller the glass, the more potent the drink.

"I think its working." The music shifted from the cheesy, fast paced 70s rock to Otis Redding's _Cigarettes and Coffee_. "Finally, a decent song," Scott breathed, pulling her closer.

"I don't want to make him jealous," she said, softly. "I don't even know what I want." She rested one hand on his shoulder, fingers at the back of his neck, the other against his chest, as his hands splayed at the small of her back, not producing even the smallest tingle over her skin.

"You don't strike me as the kind of girl who doesn't know what she wants, Payson. I think you know exactly what you want."

"Sometimes it doesn't matter what you want," she whispered sadly. "Thank you for the dance," she said, slipping out of his arms as the song ended.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **This is the first part of a two part chapter. I wrote it as HUGE chapter and it was just way too long to be published in one shot. It would have been overwhelming to read as a ton of stuff happens that's hugely important to the rest of the story's plot. The second half of the chapter is written and almost ready to be published. It just needs a little polish. So read, review and tell me what you think and the next chapter will be up in a day or two!


	18. Chapter 18

"Jim Beam, neat," Mark told the bartender, having finally escaped several of the toady Rock parents, who likely thought that associating with Payson Keeler's father would somehow make their daughters into world class gymnasts.

"The hard stuff," a deep voice said from next to him, amusement clear.

Mark turned and saw a well-dressed man, probably close to his age, nursing a beer. "Have you ever been to one of these events?" Mark asked. The man shook his head. "It's not a Rock event without someone going home in tears, a relationship ending or some other major catastrophe interfering with what should be an enjoyable night out."

"Derek Webster," the man said, extending his hand.

"Mark Keeler," he said, shaking it firmly, just as the bartender placed his drink on the bar.

"Keeler," Derek said, frowning. "I've heard that name before."

Mark was accustomed to people knowing who Payson was and how everywhere, except perhaps St. Paul, Minnesota, he was very much, 'Payson Keeler's Dad.'

"Do you have a kid who trains here at the Rock?" Mark asked.

Derek nodded. "My oldest daughter. She's not a gymnast, but her cheerleading squad practices here sometimes."

"That's probably why you know my name. Payson, my daughter," he explained, motioning up towards the large screen where footage of Payson's floor routine from the All Around in Rio was conveniently playing, "she's a gymnast here."

"That's incredible. My daughter can barely do two of those flip things without falling over," Derek said, as the video transitioned to the medal ceremony, Payson's All Around gold being placed around her neck by the chairman of the Federation of International Gymnastics. "Payson Keeler."

"All Around World Champion," Mark supplied for him, handing him a copy of the auction program, a stack of which Kim gave him to distribute earlier in the evening.

"You must be very proud. I wonder if my Morgan knows her," Derek mused.

Mark shrugged. "They've probably crossed paths a time or two. Payson trains here full time, so if your daughter's team practices here…" he trailed off.

Derek's eyes wandered over the crowd, catching on a lovely looking woman who was waving him over, consoling a teenaged girl. "What was it you were saying about tears?" he said, frowning. "It looks like I'm needed. Nice meeting you," he said.

"Yeah, you too," Mark said, shaking the man's hand before he pushed into the crowd towards his family.

"Mark," another voice called out, as he leaned against the bar.

"Alex," he said, shaking hands. "Been a while."

"Since Rio," Alex Cruz supplied. "How are things?"

"Good, good," Mark said. "I'm back in Boulder full time, girls are good, Kim is…she's Kim," he said, an affectionate smile taking over his face. "Can't complain. You?"

"Pretty good. Finally found a house, down by the lake. You like to fish? I've got a dock out back, great for fishing. Stop by sometime."

"I may just take you up on that," he said, taking a sip of his drink.

"What can I get you?" the bartender asked Alex.

Alex raised his brow at Mark. "Jim Beam, neat," he supplied. Alex nodded to the bartender that he wanted the same.

"Do you believe that?" he asked, nodding up towards the screen where it had cycled back to 2007, the medal ceremony at junior nationals after what looked like the floor exercise final, because there was Kelly Parker at the top of the podium, Payson in second and Kaylie in third.

"They grew up really fast, Alex," Mark acknowledged. "Too fast," he said, his eyes wandering the crowd, finding Payson dancing with a young man he didn't recognize, smiling at whatever line the kid had thrown her.

"Kaylie's moving out," Alex confessed, taking up his drink from the bar and taking a sharp sip.

Mark's eyes flickered beyond Payson to Kaylie, dancing with Austin Tucker. His eyes grew wide. Were they at this point already? Hadn't they skipped a couple of steps? Was Payson next? The thoughts flew through his mind in a slightly alcohol driven panic.

Obviously his thoughts were written clearly across his face. "No, not with the boyfriend, though that's probably next. She and Kelly Parker are going to be roommates."

"What about the boyfriend?" Mark asked. "They serious?"

"I think so," Alex said, shaking his head. "He's a decent kid by all accounts, though weren't we all?" His meaning was clear and Mark agreed. They'd all been good kids, generally, but when it came to women, they'd all been after the same thing, regardless of whether their ultimate intentions were honorable.

"We raised smart girls, Alex. Smart girls who are going to put their dream ahead of any boy," he said, though perhaps he was assuring himself more so than Alex.

"I don't know," Alex said, eyes still focused on Kaylie and Austin dancing. "I think they might decide they can have both."

Involuntarily, Mark found his eyes roving the crowd, before finding the man he was looking for. Sasha Belov was standing with Summer van Horne, bodies turned towards each other. Something Sasha said made Summer laugh and smile widely. He couldn't help but feel relieved at the scene, but a small part of him felt a pang of regret for Payson. Would she be hurt if Sasha and Summer decided to give it another go?

He found Payson in the crowd again, still dancing with the same young man, but her eyes were fixed at a point over his shoulder. Mark followed her line of sight and saw Sasha gazing back, the glare fierce in his daughter's direction. Anger? No, not anger, but jealousy, protectiveness and not a little pain, that same small part of him read clearly.

That small part of his mind started to grow as he watched Payson dance with a man he didn't know at all and suddenly Sasha, all six feet one inch and thirty years of him, didn't seem quite as old as he had just a few minutes ago. Sasha, stable, responsible, totally supportive of his daughter's dreams, a good man. If Payson wanted someone in her life, maybe, despite how much he despised the idea in general, there were far worse options than Sasha Belov.

"Mark? You in there buddy?" Alex asked.

"Yeah sorry," Mark said, shaking himself free from his thoughts. "We raised good girls," he said finally, "and now we just have to trust them to make good decisions."

"I'll drink to that," Alex said, downing the rest of his scotch.

Mark followed suit, his eyes still focused on his daughter, who was still very much focused on her coach.

* * *

><p>He couldn't tear his eyes away from her. From the moment she emerged into the hallway of the apartment complex she'd captivated him. The pink satiny dress, cinched at the waist, resting lightly against her thighs, shapely legs, delicate ankles strapped into stiletto heels, long blonde hair settling in a golden wave over her shoulders. She was beautiful.<p>

Sasha shook his head. What was he thinking? She was forbidden in every possible way that mattered; Payson Keeler was off limits, no matter how much he wanted her or how much she wanted him and how perfect they'd be together in every way, it could not happen.

And so he'd stuck close to Summer all night. Beautiful, intelligent, appropriate Summer who had made her preferences clear. Her body language was screaming to him, though he knew that what her body was saying and what she intended were two totally different things. So he drank heavily, flirted and made her laugh and in the process hurt Payson even more.

"Sasha," Lauren Tanner called, as she quickly approached them. "Oh Summer, there you are! You better ask her to dance soon, Sasha, the night's half over."

Summer's jaw dropped in shock at Lauren's suggestion and saved Sasha from replying by stuttering, "Oh, umm, Lauren, I don't think that's really…with auctions every few minutes I can't be dancing. I have to keep track of the money we've raised and the people who've donated without bidding and…"

Lauren, clearly bored with the list of Summer's duties at the event shook her head, "Fine, fine, be a party pooper, but I'm really glad I caught you two together. I was thinking the other night that we don't have a chaperone yet for Vegas, not a female chaperone anyway and I think it's important that we have someone with us, so…" she paused for effect, though they both knew what was coming, "Summer why don't you come? I would totally be willing to share my room with you if you wanted, although really the Rock should pay for your room and board if you're chaperoning."

"Sasha, I didn't realize you didn't have a chaperone lined up," Summer said. "Why didn't you just ask? I'd be happy to do it," she said and he managed to fight down the cringe.

Taking a small sip of his scotch, a personal favorite, the Vat 69, he stalled for time to respond. He hadn't asked her because the last thing he wanted was to spend four days with Summer van Horne. He'd been an idiot tonight, trying to simply slip back into a relationship, a safe, totally appropriate relationship he really didn't want and now the universe was punishing him for it. There was no way he could turn down her offer without looking like a total ass.

"I didn't want to impose on you by asking," he said, the excuse sounding lame to his own ears.

However, Summer seemed to buy it. "Don't be silly, I love traveling with the girls and supporting them in competition. It'll be a lot of fun."

"Great!" Lauren squealed in delight, giving Summer a brief hug. "I'll pick you up tomorrow morning on our way to the airport."

Lauren bounced away and Sasha's eyes drifted to the ceiling and then back out to the dance floor, instinctively finding the object of his affections in the small sea of people.

Perfect, just perfect, four days in Las Vegas, one woman he could have and didn't want, the other he wanted and couldn't have, plus the pressure of a major national competition where his girls would face huge challenges, not just from their national teammates, but from the upcoming juniors who would be age eligible for the Olympic games next year. It was a recipe for disaster if he ever saw one.

"Would you?" Summer's voice echoed in his ears, cutting through his thoughts and drawing his gaze away from the girl currently dancing in the arms of another man, arms he wanted to pull from their sockets and beat their owner to a bloody pulp with, hypothetically of course, if only just.

He swallowed back the rage building and turned towards Summer. "Absolutely," he said and her smile grew wide and almost blinding. He had no idea what he just agreed to. Summer slipped a hand into his and led him a few yards through the crowd, further away from the stage.

_Don't, please just don't_, Payson's words resounded in his mind, the pain in her eyes, her voice wavering. It nearly gutted him. He should have been stronger, he shouldn't have allowed himself to give in, even if was for the briefest of moments, a torturously sweet kiss, he hurt her and that was unacceptable. There had to be a way to fix this, to let her know how much he wanted her, how much he cared without hurting her again, though he was at a loss as to how.

"Sasha," Summer's voice broke through and he realized they'd stopped, but her hand hadn't left his. "Sasha, this is my pastor, Harold Cunningham. Pastor Harold, this is Sasha Belov."

"Pleasure to meet you, son," the tall, well dressed man said, smiling affectionately down at Summer as Sasha shook his hand. "Summer has told me a lot about you."

"Has she?" Sasha said, glancing down towards Summer who had the grace to look a little guilty about it. She'd gone and talked to a perfect stranger about their relationship when she hadn't even had the decency to talk to him about it. It wasn't that he cared, not now, but it was just another in a long list of reasons why they would never work as a couple.

"Yes, she told me you spent some time recently in Romania," Harold said, "I've heard it's a beautiful country. Was it your first time there?"

"No, I was born there," Sasha supplied. He hated sharing details of his life, particularly with complete strangers.

"But the English accent?" Harold pressed further.

"My mother was British," he said, shortly.

Harold hummed his understanding. "Now that you're back I'm hoping you'll join us for services on Sunday. There are lot of people who are very fond of Summer who are looking forward to meeting you," he said, smiling widely.

Sasha flinched, wondering what exactly Summer told him or anyone else for that matter about their relationship. Still he tried to be polite. "Thank you, but I don't think I'd fit in very well with your congregation," he said.

The pastor nodded, unfazed by the refusal. "We're welcoming of all faiths and denominations, Sasha. We'd be happy to have you, no matter what your affiliation."

Sasha smirked, unable to resist. "Atheism?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Summer's jaw dropped a little and she started to stutter an apology, but the pastor simply chuckled and smirked right back. "Especially that one."

"Thank you for the invitation, but I think I'll have to pass," Sasha said, his smile widening, religion aside, he liked this man.

"Suit yourself," he said, "the invitation stands however. I know how persistent Summer can be. If you two will excuse me, I think I'm headed to the buffet. It was a pleasure to meet you, Sasha."

"You too, sir," he said.

"I can't believe you just…" Summer said, glaring up at him, clearly affronted.

"I just what?" he bit out, feeling an argument brewing and after how frustrating this night had been and the alcohol flowing through his bloodstream, he was more than up to the task.

Unfortunately for his stress levels, Kim Keeler decided to interrupt them, walking side by side with a young man close to his own age.

"Sasha, Summer," Kim said, "I wanted to introduce you both to Peter Carlisle, Payson's agent."

They exchanged pleasantries quickly, but then Summer, glancing at her watch, nearly leapt out of her skin. "It's time for the next auction. Do you see Kelly anywhere?"

Kim, ever cool in the face of crisis, or in this case a missing gymnast, glanced around the room. "Everyone seems to be enjoying the party. Let's not panic. You take the area near the stage and I'll go check the rest rooms. I'm sure we'll find her. If you'll excuse us, gentleman," Kim said, "duty calls."

They watched the women walk away in silence, until finally Pete broke it with the one bit of common ground he knew they shared. "It's been a big night for Payson," he said.

Sasha's eyes flickered from observing the crowd over to the other man. He hadn't known he was Payson's agent at the time, but he recalled him from earlier, leading Payson through a throng of people, hand dangerously low on her back. It was that touch which had cemented his bad mood for the evening and he was certainly not of a mind to make nice with a money grubbing, slick sports agent, no matter whom he represented.

"How's that?" he asked, wondering what could have possibly happened at this party to constitute it as a big night for anyone.

"I brought some representatives here from Cover Girl and they love her. They're going to do an entire ad campaign around her. Two million for this year and another five if she wins gold in London," Peter said, smiling widely.

Sasha nodded, raising his eyebrows. "That's a lot of money. Pretty big pay day for you. What do you a get, a standard fifteen percent off the top? That's what? A million, fifty? Not too shabby, Pete."

Pete snorted and turned towards him. "Look Sasha, you don't have to like me. Hell, I don't care if this is the last time we ever speak, but I've got to tell you, Payson is the real deal and not just as far as her gymnastics is concerned. Look at her, she's beautiful, intelligent, she's an athlete, but she doesn't look like one of those muscular midgets they parade out every quadrennial. She's a star in the making and I've got to be honest, I'm a little concerned about the rumors I've heard."

"Rumors?" Sasha said, nearly growling the word out between clenched teeth, fingers tightening around the glass tumbler in his hand.

"About you and my client, Belov, something about a kiss and you two being _very close._ The details are a little hazy," Pete said, "and should those details get clearer, more defined, I won't hesitate to recommend to Payson and her parents that a different coaching situation would be beneficial to her career."

Sasha's anger faded as amusement overpowered it. Clearly Pete Carlisle had no idea who he was representing. "Really? You'd advise Payson to stop training with me?" he asked.

"I would," Pete affirmed.

"You do that," Sasha suggested, "and please, bring a camcorder, so I can see the look on her face when you try to tell Payson what's best for her gymnastics. You should get to know your clients a little better before you venture to speak on their behalf."

Pete gaped at him, but Sasha just smiled pleasantly, "If that's all, I'm going to go grab another drink," he said, taking the final swallow of his scotch, letting the liquid burn down his throat as he walked away.

"Bloody wanker," he mumbled to himself, placing his glass down upon the bar and waiting for the bartender to finish serving the man next to him.

"Anyone I know?" the man asked, turning in his direction. Payson's father, his brain registered.

"Vat 69," he said to the bartender who nodded and poured out. "Your daughter's grease ball of an agent," Sasha said, lifting his chin vaguely towards the area he'd left Pete Carlisle standing with his mouth gaping open.

Mark frowned and Sasha took a sip of his newly filled tumbler. "I don't know. He has Payson's best interest at heart."

The alcohol loosening his tongue, he scoffed. "He has his wallet's best interest at heart. It just so happens those two mean the same thing right now."

"You're worried he'll take advantage of Payson?" Mark asked, eyes narrowing at him.

Sasha closed his eyes and shook his head. "Your daughter is smart enough to know when she's being taken advantage of, Mark."

"So then what's the problem? He seems like a good guy," Mark said curtly.

Sasha frowned. Mark Keeler had always hated sports agents, hated everything they represented and had only begrudgingly allowed Payson to sign with one after her success at Worlds. So what had changed? "

"I just have a problem with people who leech off the success of others, in general," Sasha said, with a shrug.

"Like a father who lets his daughter pay the bills for him?" Mark's voice cracked like a whip in the air.

"What?" Sasha said, panic rising at the thought of offending Mark. "No, you, you've been supporting Payson since she was a little girl, harboring her dream, helping her make it a reality. That's what a father does, what a man does," he rambled a little, "they support the people they love, however they can…" he trailed off, loosing his train of thought, but hoping he'd made his point well enough.

Mark's expression lightened, if only just a fraction and Sasha took another sip of his drink intending to keep this mouth shut for the remainder of the conversation, though he wasn't sure that was possible, to have a conversation with his mouth shut. Another sip and he thought maybe it was. He'd chased the impossible his entire life; why not try this?

"And now up for auction, All-Around World Champion, Payson Keeler," Summer announced from the stage. "Tonight Payson is auctioning off private gymnastics lessons. Two hour, one on one sessions."

Someone in the crowd wolf whistled and Sasha cringed at the double entendre. Summer glared into the sea of people, but it would be impossible to find the culprit.

The auctioneer, a heavyset man with a Stetson hat, plaid shirt, a bolero tie and cowboy boots started the bidding. "Alright, ladies and gents, let's start at five hundred dollars!"

The crowd murmured, until the auctioneer pointed to someone in the crowd who bid. And then it was off, like wild fire.

Sasha's eyes searched the floor, centering on a tall, African American man in a business suit, possibly someone's father. Then his eyes found another as the auctioneer pointed him out, a similarly dressed man, if a little younger than the first.

"Nine hundred, nine fifty, do I hear one thousand?"

"Twelve hundred," a voice called over the din of crowd noise, which grew in reaction.

Sasha found the source of the crazy bid almost immediately. The kid had been on his radar all night, since he saw him dancing with Payson earlier. The same kid who was at the foot of Austin's driveway the night he picked her up from the party. It figured the idiot wouldn't know the rules or potentially outbid himself. The pothead snowboarder, Scott something…

"We've got thirteen," the auctioneer said, the crowd getting into it as the older black man raised a hand with three fingers up.

"Do I hear fourteen?" Scott's hand shot up.

Sasha's eyes flickered back to the stage where Payson was standing, mouth opened just slightly, her cheeks flushed pink in embarrassment. She was glaring in Scott's direction and then looking apologetically towards the other men bidding. Then somehow, her eyes fell upon him and held.

"Fifteen hundred dollars, folks!" the auctioneer exclaimed, adding a, "Yeehaw!" for effect.

Involuntarily, eyes still trained upon her, Sasha felt himself stepping forward, wanting to make this end for her, willing to empty his checking account, if that's what it took. His alcohol soaked mind tried to recall how much he had in savings, then he shook his head, a few thousands dollars would be a drop in the bucket.

"Hey," Mark said, a heavy hand falling upon his shoulder. "Don't," he added, gripping tight, pulling him back.

Sasha made to protest, but Mark just shook his head and then nodded into the crowd. Austin was standing next to his friend, the snowboarder, Scotty Whatever, and was whispering to him frantically.

"Seventeen hundred dollars, do I have eighteen?" the auctioneer, said, looking towards Scott. Austin shook his head no in answer and the auctioneer rapped the gavel against the podium . "Sold then, the top item of the evening, for seventeen hundred dollars to the man in the navy blue pinstripes!"

He watched as Payson spun on her toe and walked off the stage, before making a beeline for where Austin and Scott stood. She was clearly furious and though he couldn't hear what she was saying, he was sure she was ripping him a new one. He almost pitied the kid, _almost_.

Releasing a breath of relief, Sasha turned back to his drink, only to find Mark Keeler studying him carefully.

"My daughter can take care of herself, Sasha," Mark said. "She doesn't need to be rescued."

Sasha nodded firmly. "I know she can take care of herself," he admitted, "but she shouldn't have to." As the words escaped his lips, he knew what they sounded like and despite it being the truth, he tried to backpedal. "I…" he began.

Her father just shook his head. "You were just doing what a man does," Mark said quietly, though he couldn't read the emotion behind the words, it was tightly reigned, as Sasha's words from just minutes before were thrown back at him. "Good luck in Vegas, Sasha," he continued, clapping him on the shoulder, probably a bit more firmly than was necessary to make his point. "I have a feeling you're going to need it."

* * *

><p>It was all so completely unfair. Lauren pressed her back into the wall, watching the party goes milling around, saying their goodbyes. It was all Kelly Parker's fault.<p>

The bet should be declared null and void.

Lauren's auction was right after Kaylie's. It was the perfect set up. Just as people got excited about the National Champion and got fired up for the bidding, she took the stage and drawn a very respectable seven hundred dollars.

Kelly was supposed to have been auctioned off right before Payson, whose gymnastics lessons were likely to be the top draw of the night. The bidding usually died right before the best items, as the crowd would be anxious to get to the next round of bidding.

Except Kelly had disappeared during her turn, using the bathroom as a pathetic excuse for moving her auction. Of course the ever-trusting Summer simply went along with it, totally believing KP when she showed up ten minutes later apologizing for missing her time.

So instead of going right before Payson, she'd gone after Payson. The remaining crowd, fired up from the bidding war for the world champion and worried they might leave the night empty handed, spent an appalling eleven hundred dollars on Kelly Parker's glorified mani/pedi.

She stomped off, though she didn't know where she was going. She grabbed a surprised Max along the way, tugging him by the wrist sharply, away from the crowds. She led him towards the parents viewing area, serving as the coat check for the night and then Lauren lost it.

"Why didn't you bid on me?" she demanded, drawing the attention of several people around them, but not caring in the slightest.

"What?" Max asked, looking as confused as she was feeling. "You told me not to before we came in tonight. You said something about a bet with the girls."

"Why did you listen to me?" she asked. "When a girl tells you do to something that stupid you should just know you're supposed to do the opposite."

"I'm supposed to read your mind?" Max asked, incredulously. "Don't be ridiculous, Lauren. You lost the bet. Deal with it."

"Deal with it?" she repeated, fuming.

"Two days ago you were threatening to withhold sex if I didn't bid for you," he said, narrowing his eyes. "And don't deny it, I know that's what you meant," he said as she opened her mouth to contradict him.

Maybe she had, just a little, but that was before, when she wanted him to win her.

It seemed Max was just finding his heading as he continued, "and then today you tell me that I'm not allowed to bid on you because of a bet. Okay fine, whatever. It would have been a total waste of money anyway."

Lauren's jaw dropped, deeply offended. He was her boyfriend. He was supposed to support her, no matter what.

Max wasn't finished. "Then we get here and you scream at me because Kaylie and Kelly are moving in together, like that's somehow my fault. And now you're pissed when I follow your instructions not to bid on you? You had no chance of winning anyway. Kelly Parker is a former National and World Champion, Lauren. You do three events and they always drop your floor score. Do the math."

"You're an asshole," she shot at him, trying not to let the sting of his words settle around her, trying to ignore that what he said was the truth.

Max threw his hands in the air, "You're right. I am. I'm an asshole for thinking that you and that bland as fuck sex we've been having was worth _this_. You're insane, did anyone ever tell you that? Complete fucking insane."

"Screw you," she shouted at his retreating back, not caring that they'd drawn an audience and a rather large one at that.

"No thanks. Been there, done that," Max said scathingly, before striding away from her.

Lauren was left standing alone and though the faces swimming in front of her were familiar, none were friendly. She took a step forward and then another, moving as quickly as the tight cut of her dress would allow. She managed to get herself to the edge of the woman's locker room before a sob wrenched itself out of her throat, choking her, forcing the tears to fall.

It was one of the worst nights of her life. First she found out that her best friend was moving in with the girl they'd once considered a mortal enemy. She'd managed to get Summer on as their chaperone for Vegas, but her plan to reunite her with Sasha seemed doomed. Summer had spent much of her time back stage muttering angrily about arrogant asses who thought they were clever. Then that farce of an auction and now Max, dumping her, in front of everyone.

She leaned her forehead against the cool metal of the first row of lockers when she heard the rumble of voices further into the room.

"Are you sure this is a good idea, Kel?" Austin's voice carried over from the row behind her.

"I thought about it, Austin. I just, I really want this," Kelly responded and Lauren's ears practically perked up. Whatever they were talking about sounded private, _very_ private.

"Have you talked to Payson? I figured that you would…"

"I did, but she wasn't interested," Kelly cut him off. "She thought it was a good idea, in fact she suggested it after she turned me down."

Austin sighed, the sound echoing off the lockers. "I just don't want anyone to get hurt."

"Why would anyone get hurt?" Kelly asked. "This isn't a big deal, Austin. It's what we both want." Their footsteps echoed closer and Lauren quickly hid herself behind the row of lockers, watching them exit.

She tried to comprehend what she just heard. Nothing was clear, except that Kelly and Austin had a secret; a secret Payson was in on as well, a secret that could hurt someone. Who? And how?

"Lo?" Kaylie's voice echoed from just outside. "Lauren, are you in here?" she called. She stepped out from the shadows and saw Kaylie standing at the other end of the row looking worried. "I heard what happened."

"Everyone heard what happened," she said, catching a glimpse of herself in the long mirror mounted on the wall. Her mascara and eyeliner were running down her face in long, black stains, her eyes were red and swollen. She looked as bad as her night had been.

"I'm so sorry, Lo," Kaylie said, moving closer and embracing her. "Let's get you home and we can have a sleepover and talk about what a complete ass Max Spencer is," her best friend suggested, the very same best friend whose boyfriend and future roommate had a secret, a big one.

There was only one reason a girl and a guy would keep a secret. Now all she needed was proof.

"Lo? How does that sound?" Kaylie asked again, squeezing her shoulder tightly.

"That sounds really great, Kaylie," Lauren said, suddenly she wasn't just going to Vegas to win another beam title, she was going to Vegas to win back her best friend.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: ***ducks rotten fruit thrown in her direction* I know, I know. I'm evil and a tease and all kinds of things, but I told you guys when I started this fic that it would be more realistic than NJYbA. There's no way that Sasha and Payson would get together without a ton and a half of tension and more than a little angst for both of them. What I can promise is that your patience will be rewarded…eventually.

There was a lot going on here. Do you guys get why I split up the chapters now? I wanted you all to really get a handle on how Payson was dealing with everything, but there was so much other stuff that had to happen as well that I didn't want one to overpower the other.

So to summarize (in case you lost track in this 8K word update): Payson's pretty pissed at Sasha and herself (and Scotty Lago too), KP won the bet and got herself a roommate, Lauren got her ass dumped and thinks she knows something about Kelly and Austin and Payson (though I'm pretty sure you all can guess what they were really talking about) and oh boy is that going to just go nuclear and poor Sasha is drunk and needs a ride home. *Cue foreboding music*

I have a crazy weekend ahead (first an earthquake and now we're getting a hurricane! I thought I lived in NY, but apparently I live in some Miami/LA fusion city), but as long as the power stays on, hopefully I'll be able to write!

Don't forget to review!


	19. Chapter 19

"You are drunk," Payson said, her hip falling into the door jam of the Rock office, her shoulder and head following. She crossed her arms over her chest, daring him to contradict her.

"I am," Sasha agreed, from his desk chair, staring up at the ceiling as if the secrets to the universe were written there.

"How drunk are you?" she asked, cautiously approaching him, her eyes drifting upwards to see what he was looking at.

"Drunk enough to think that little bit of stucco looks like Margaret Thatcher," he said, squinting, before closing his left eye.

Payson sighed and smiled, while shaking her head. "Come on, I'll drive you home."

Sasha waved her off. "I was just going to sleep here tonight," he said.

"Right, so you can pass out and sleep in and miss the flight tomorrow morning? I don't think so. Let's go, coach," she insisted, resting a hand on his shoulder. His muscles tensed under her touch and she pulled her hand away immediately. "Sorry," she murmured.

"Don't apologize," he said softly, before pushing his hands against his thighs and standing up. He swayed in place for a moment and then exhaling sharply he moved towards the door. Apparently Sasha was just as talented at hiding his intoxication as he was other things because she didn't notice a hint of unsteadiness in his gait as he descended the stairs.

"Everyone gone home?" he asked, tilting his head back towards the main gym, now dark and empty.

"Yep," she said.

"Why not you?" he asked, pushing the door open, moving out into the chilly night. He spun on his heel and stared at her, eyes penetrating into hers.

Payson shrugged. "You know why," she said simply.

"I guess I do," he said. She smiled, though perhaps it was more of a grimace and then stepped around him lightly to unlock her car.

Silently, they got in and drove away towards his apartment.

"I'm sorry," he said, as she eased to a stop at the first traffic light. It was red, though the cross street was empty this time of night.

Payson simply tightened her grip on the steering wheel and ignored him.

"It's not your job to take care of me," he continued.

"It's my fault you got drunk," she said sharply, turning in her seat to look at him, before sighing heavily and looking back out towards the road.

"I got drunk because I wanted to get drunk, Payson," he said. The light turned green and she hit the gas.

"Of course you did," she said and turned into the apartment complex parking lot. Kelly's car was already there. She pulled into Sasha's vacant spot.

They sat in silence for a moment before Sasha unbuckled his seatbelt and got out of the car. She followed him up the two flights of stairs and watched as he pulled out his keys and unlocked the door.

"Do you want to come in?" he asked.

It must have been the alcohol talking because a sober Sasha, in this situation would never have invited her in, not this late at night, not when her parents were expecting her home soon and certainly not when their emotions were running high and raw. Then again, a sober Sasha wouldn't have needed a ride home in the first place.

"Yes," she said and slipped into the living room behind him.

The door clicked shut.

"I think your father knows," he said and Payson's world stopped.

"What?" she asked. Maybe he was drunker than she originally thought. Maybe he was out of his mind and spewing nonsense.

"I think your father knows," he repeated, turning to face her, obviously knowing exactly what he was saying. "It was something he said to me tonight, when that pothead snowboarder was bidding on your lessons, something about what men do and needing luck and you not needing me to take care of you."

Now he was rambling, but still somehow, it made sense. Everything he was saying made sense.

Her father knew _something_, either about Sasha's feelings or her feelings or both. Maybe he thought…maybe he thought it was more than just feelings. Maybe her wonderful, supportive and extraordinarily perceptive father thought there were physical actions accompanying those feelings.

"Was he upset?" she asked, taking a step towards Sasha who was leaning against his kitchen counter, arms folded against his ribcage, head down, chin to his chest. He simply remained silent. "Sasha," she said, moving closer to him, her hand reaching out, resting on his bicep. His head moved, eyes focusing upon her hand.

"I don't know," he finally answered. "He seemed…he seemed resigned."

"Resigned," she repeated. That didn't sound like her father. Just a few months ago the mere implication that she and Sasha were more than just coach and athlete had him storming out of rooms. If he knew, Payson couldn't imagine resignation to be her father's reaction.

"Then he doesn't know anything," Payson said, pressing her weight into her hand. She shuffled a little closer, the toes of her pumps slipped between his dark black dress shoes, so different and yet looking as if they belonged there.

Sasha shook his head. "Is there anything to know?" he asked, finally meeting her eyes. His hand lifted into the air and came to rest on her cheek.

Payson didn't answer as her eyes fluttered shut and her heart began to pound in her chest. Her breath caught in her throat as his hand slid from her cheek to her jaw line, around to her neck, fingers tangling into her hair.

"What are we doing?" he rasped out, his forehead falling lightly against hers.

"I don't know," she whispered back, just as his lips moved hotly over hers, dominating and possessive, deepening the kiss immediately. She could taste the alcohol on his tongue and a shiver ran down her spine.

He drew her against him and she happily surrendered, letting her body fall into his, curling a leg around his calf, her lower body pushing up onto his thigh. One hand buried into his hair, the other caught on a belt loop, anchoring herself to him.

His free hand slid down over her shoulder, into her rib cage, catching the underside of her breast with his thumb. Payson gasped into his mouth, throwing her head back, exposing her neck to him. He knew what her body was telling him, even if she didn't know it herself. His lips created a smooth trail over the line of her jaw, down to her pulse point, scraping his teeth there, eliciting a low moan of approval from the back of her throat.

Sasha's hands mimicked the actions of his mouth, slipping down over the smooth silk of her dress, one hand grasping at the thigh hitched high near his hip, the other sliding over her backside. He pulled her into him and she writhed against him, feeling the hard press of him against her thigh.

Involuntarily, she froze at the unfamiliar sensation and his body, so attuned to hers stopped as well.

She shook her head. "I'm sorry," she said, exhaling, feeling stupid and naïve and more than a little frustrated.

"No," he said, leaning back against the counter, disentangling their limbs and standing up straight, though not moving away from her. "I shouldn't have…I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," she said. "I know we haven't talked about this, but it's not going to go away, Sasha. We both feel _something_ and if we don't figure it out, this is just going to keep happening over and over again."

"No," he said, finally stepping away from her. He stood in the center of his living room, running an irritated hand through his hair. "No, it's not going to keep happening, because I'm putting an end to it right now."

"Sasha, I don't think…" she began, but he cut her off.

"I'm drunk, Payson. And you're a beautiful girl and you happened to be standing right here," he said, looking determinedly at his living room wall. "That's all this was."

Payson knew he was lying, knew what he was saying was just part of whatever noble minded plan he'd formulated in his alcohol soaked brain, but regardless of that, something inside of her broke at his words.

She stepped forward; standing so close she could practically taste his aftershave, mixed with the heady scent of alcohol.

"I guess there really isn't anything for my father to know," she whispered. She stepped around him, her shoulder brushing against his chest and as she did, his hand reached out and grasped wrist, a loose bracelet, neither holding her back nor letting her go.

"Good night, Payson," he said, still staring at that wall.

"Good night," she said, pulling her arm free and striding out of the apartment without looking back.

* * *

><p>"Miss Lauren, your ride is here," Conseula called from the front door.<p>

"My ride?" Lauren asked, looking up as she rounded the corner into the living room, dragging her luggage behind her.

Her father smiled at her. "I thought you and Summer deserved to ride in a little luxury on the way to the airport," he said, eyes twinkling at her.

She raced to the door and saw a black stretch limousine sitting the driveway.

"Thank you so much, Daddy," she said, as he followed her out the door, pulling her suitcase behind him.

"I know you were upset after the auction last night and I thought this would cheer you up. Have a safe flight and if you need anything you call me and let me know." He pulled out his wallet and took out a gold card. "No trips to Romania this time," he warned.

"Of course not, Daddy," she promised and took the card, slipping it into her large handbag.

"Good luck. I know you're going to be spectacular," he said, pulling her into an embrace.

"See you next week," she said, pulling away from the hug and handing off her luggage to the driver, she climbed into the limo.

As soon as the driver shut the door, her happy façade fell from her face.

Since the moment she left the auction until now, her mind was racing. She stayed up until the wee hours of the morning running through that conversation she overheard between Austin and Kelly Parker over and over again. There were so many possibilities, the conversation was so vague, but the one thing that she was sure of was that if Austin was worried about someone getting hurt, than that someone was most assuredly Kaylie.

What did Kelly say? She said she asked Payson, but Payson wasn't interested. So what could Kelly ask Payson that she would also ask Austin that could hurt Kaylie? Her mind immediately jumped to the worst possible scenario. Kelly Parker and Austin Tucker were hooking up behind Kaylie's back.

Lauren wrinkled her nose. That left the problem of Payson.

_She wasn't interested_. That's what Kelly said. Payson wasn't interested. The only thing Payson _was_ interested in was gymnastics, so the list of things that didn't interest her was pretty long.

Then, suddenly, it all made sense. Payson wasn't interested, but Austin was? It all fit. Payson wasn't interested in Kelly. Payson was only interested in middle-aged men, so Kelly had moved on to Austin.

Kelly Parker was bisexual. It was the only explanation.

Holy shit, Kelly Parker was bisexual.

Shock wore off quickly and Lauren smirked to herself. This couldn't be more perfect. Kaylie's new roomie wasn't just moving in on her boyfriend, she also played for both teams. Kaylie was going to freak. Now she just needed some proof.

Lauren sat back in her seat, as the limousine slid to a halt in front of Summer's house. She pressed the moon roof button and stood up into the opening, waving enthusiastically at Summer as she locked the door behind her and moved down her driveway.

"Look what Daddy got us!" Lauren said, smiling widely, throwing her arms out to highlight the stretch limo.

Summer smiled back, shaking her head. "Good morning, Lauren."

Lauren bounced down into her seat as the driver opened the door for Summer.

They sat in silence for a moment, until Summer finally broke it just as the drive maneuvered away from the curb.

"I heard about what happened last night, Lauren," Summer said.

"It was just a silly bet," Lauren said, trying to sound nonchalant. She fully intended to call Kelly out on her cheating. There was no way that she would be introducing herself all weekend as, 'Lauren Tanner, I won a gold medal at Worlds.'

Summer just shook her head and gave her a sad sort of smile. "No, Lauren, I meant I heard what happened with Max."

Lauren shrugged uncomfortably. "He said some stupid things that aren't true. He's a guy, guys do that when you dump them." The lie slipped out before she even before it processes in her mind.

"You dumped him?" Summer asked, eyebrows rising into her bangs.

"Yeah," Lauren said, looking Summer dead in the eye. "I dumped him and then he freaked out, yelled some things. It's fine."

Summer narrowed her eyes. "But the things he said, Lauren, a lot of people heard them."

"The people I care about know the truth," she said and smiled at Summer, hoping she would believe this. After everything they'd been through together, she didn't want Summer thinking the worst of her. She needed Summer with her, on her side, no matter what.

"As long as you're okay," Summer said, reaching out to pat her knee. "If you want, I can talk to Sasha about it. If Max is spreading lies like that then he isn't the kind of person who should be training at the Rock."

"No don't," Lauren said. "He was just upset. It's really no big deal. I feel bad about dumping him and I don't want to draw it out any more. It's over and we can both move on."

Summer nodded and smiled. "That's very mature of you, Lauren."

"Thanks," Lauren beamed at her.

They rode in silence a little longer when a brilliant plan settled into Lauren's mind. If Summer wanted to go after someone, she would set her on the right trail.

"Summer, what does the Church teach on bisexuality?" Lauren asked, the non sequitur clearly shocking Summer.

"Excuse me?" Summer asked. "Lauren, that isn't something you should concern yourself with. Unless, unless you've been having feelings for someone…"

"What?" Lauren asked, "no, not me. I love boys," she joked, but it fell flat. "It's a friend of mine. I'm really worried. I think she's just a little confused, she's been going through so much lately, but I don't know how to advise her."

"Scripture says that homosexuality in any form is an abomination, Lauren," Summer said, "but if she is your friend, then should be there to support her and love her and help her get through this difficult time. Are you close with her?"

"I guess," Lauren said, trying to steer Summer towards Kelly. "It was pretty rough for a while, but I think we've finally gotten to a point where I would consider her my friend. I know she can't go to her parents about it or even some of her other new friends, they don't really have a lot of experience with anyone, guys or girls so she came to me about it."

Summer reached over to pat Lauren's knee lightly. "I understand. If you think your friend would want to, she can come and talk with me. If not, I'll be here for you and you know you can ask me anything."

"I know," Lauren said, clasping her hand over Summer's and squeezing tightly.

* * *

><p>The flight was only an hour long, but to Sasha it felt like it would never end. He felt like a vice was pressing into his temples, every thousand miles or so of altitude wrenching it tighter.<p>

He hadn't consumed that much alcohol in a very long time and today he was paying for it. As far as he was concerned, he deserved every single pulse of pain rippling through his head.

Just two rows ahead of him, he could see the smooth curve of her shoulder, her elbow leaning on her armrest and her knee jutting out into the aisle. She was cross-legged in her seat. She turned her head and her long blonde braid flicked out over her shoulder.

He wasn't sure what he regretted more, kissing her or the lie he told afterward. That she wasn't anything more than an outlet for his drunken desires. The glare she'd given him as the untruth spilled from his lips was enough to convince him that she didn't believe a word of it. Still, he knew he hurt her. He'd done far more harm with his words than with that kiss. He was at a loss. What was the right path? Things were spiraling out of control; he was out of control and he needed to reign himself in before he hurt her even more. Then somehow figure out a way to fix what he'd broken.

He'd never had a relationship with anyone more beautiful than the one he had with Payson. The mountain they climbed together, the trust they had in each other, her talent, his guidance, it was destiny. But wonder of wonders, his thirty year old heart, which felt much older on most days knew what it wanted and it was not satisfied with simply being her coach. He wanted her. He loved her. And more and more, with every misstep, every moment of weakness, he believed that she loved him too.

Sasha's fingers twitched against his tray table, before he reached for his glass, taking another sip of his Bloody Mary. He was hoping a little hair of the dog would ease the pain in his head, if only so he could focus on what he needed to do once they landed in Las Vegas. Get the girls checked in; grab their credentials and then collapse into bed.

"Ladies and Gentleman, please buckle your seatbelts, raise your tray tables and be sure your seat backs are in their full upright and locked positions. We are descending into McCarran Airport and will be arriving in Las Vegas in ten minutes."

True to the captain's word, just ten minutes later they were on the ground. Three minutes after that they were inside McCarran Airport, greeted by the jarring sound of slot machines, dinging and chiming in every direction. The cacophony of sound welcomed debauchers and revelers to the City of Sin. He supposed at one time in his life, it would have appealed to him.

The vice tightened again.

They moved as a group towards the exit. They were all seasoned travelers; there was no checked luggage, only strategically packed carry-ons. As he quickly surveyed their group, counting eight athletes and one chaperone.

Kaylie and Lauren were walking together, best friends again this week. Kelly was rapid-fire texting and somehow managing not to miss a step and keep up with the group while her vision was focused solely on her phone. Then his juniors, Cassie, Paige, Jessica and Ashley locked together, shoulder to shoulder in a tiny, prepubescent foursome, giggling hysterically and he wasn't about to ask over what.

"There's our driver," Summer said, breaking into his train of thought. She pointed towards the man standing with the other livery drivers holding up a sign that read, "Rock Rebels."

Sasha snorted. His eyes searched their group for Payson. That sign had her mother written all over it, but her expression was still empty, her headphones still plugged into her ears, present physically, but not emotionally.

A feeling of dread settled over Sasha, watching her stare blankly into the crowds of people.

What had he done?

* * *

><p><strong>AN: T**ransition chapter, thy name is Chapter 19. So we're off to Vegas and well, one step forward, five steps back for our favorite couple and Lauren is about to go off the deep end.

For those of you who were confused, in the previous chapter Austin and Kelly were talking about Kaylie moving in with Kelly. Simple as that, though there has been some tension between them. However, leave it to Lauren to completely take advantage of the situation.

Just a heads up, as a result of all the encouragement and positive feedback I've been receiving from you guys for over a year now, I've finally started to write some original work. I've taken my love of sports and writing and used it to write so much MIOBI fanfic, I figure why try it out with my own characters? I'll keep you guys updated if anything comes of it!

Let me know what you thought and get ready, the Rock Rebels are about to be let loose on Las Vegas! Lots of drama, on the competition floor and off it!


	20. Chapter 20

"Ladies, wait here," Sasha said, sharply, indicating that wandering off would be a very bad idea and result in making him crankier than he already was, which Kaylie wasn't sure was possible. "Stay here with them," he said to Summer, "and try not to let any of them leave the country while I check us in."

Summer's jaw dropped in indignation, but Sasha was already moving purposefully towards the front desk.

They moved into the main lobby of the hotel, the MGM Grand, and situated themselves around the giant indoor planter, at the center of which sat a golden lion. It was a lavish hotel, but nothing that the gymnasts weren't used to, at least the girls who traveled with the National Team. The juniors were a little in awe, gaping at their surroundings, the tiled floors, the ornate fixtures, the well dressed high rollers interspersed with a few fanny pack wearing tourists, it was a kaleidoscope of activity and excitement.

"Ouch," Kelly muttered once Sasha was out of earshot.

Kaylie felt the air flow past her face as Lauren whipped around, presumably to snap at Kelly, but Lauren was strangely silent and then, "You've got to be kidding me," Lo murmured.

Kaylie turned around and couldn't help the smile that spread across her face. There, at the hotel entrance, was her boyfriend accompanied by Max, whose presence obviously prompted Lauren's reaction.

"What are they doing here?" Kelly wondered out loud.

"Ladies," Austin said, as he sauntered in their direction. Max seemed content to remain in the background, sidling off towards the far wall, eyes trained on his phone.

"What are you doing here?" Kaylie asked, echoing Kelly's question, as she stepped towards him, wrapping her arms around his neck and pulling him down for a brief kiss.

The junior girls twittered with giggles over this open display of affection and Kaylie felt a light blush spread across her cheeks.

"I came to watch you compete of course," Austin said, shooting a wink over to the juniors now gathered into a small cluster, whispering furiously. "Max is here looking for a new gym, after what happened with Lauren," he added quietly, "and I thought maybe I'd look up Emily while we were here, see how she's doing. She sounded good in her last email, but it doesn't hurt to check."

Kaylie leaned back onto her heels, dropping her arms to her sides. She'd completely forgotten that Emily was living in Vegas. Then she blinked in confusion as Austin's last words sunk in. "You've been in contact with Emily?" she asked. She thought Emily had dropped out completely.

Austin shrugged. "Just an email here and there, nothing big. I wanted to make sure she was okay, you know, financially."

Kaylie smiled. "That was sweet of you," she said, feeling a small pang of guilt that she hadn't thought of it herself, especially since she was partially responsible for Emily leaving Boulder.

"Well I'm a sweet guy," Austin said, cheekily, leaning down for another kiss, the feeling of his lips upon hers wiping away all thoughts of Emily. "I'm going to check us in. Want to have lunch in about an hour?"

"Can't. Podium training," she said. "Dinner?"

"You're on," Austin said, sneaking in one more peck on the lips before sliding away, just as Sasha turned from the desk key cards in hand. If he was surprised to see Austin, he didn't let on, just nodded to him and moved in their direction.

"Drop your bags in your rooms, change into your training gear and be back down here in twenty minutes," Sasha said.

Kaylie glanced up as Sasha offered her a keycard packet. "Room assignments, Kaylie Cruz and Cassie Bartlet," he said, nodding towards the Rock's top junior, whose jaw dropped in shock.

"I thought it would be nice for you senior girls to get to know your junior teammates," Summer said. "And you junior girls might feel less nervous for the competition if you had your senior teammates there for moral support."

Eight pairs of eyes stared at the Rock's manager incredulously and Sasha, who clearly didn't care, simply rolled his eyes and continued to distribute room keys. "Lauren and Ashley; Payson and Paige and finally Kelly and Jessica. We are all on the fifth floor; your room numbers are on your keys. Please keep your cell phones away from the keycards. If you _do _manage to strip your keycard, see the front desk and they will replace it for you."

Kaylie turned towards Cassie and smiled tightly at the younger girl who stood up and gathered her bags together. She shot Lauren a sympathetic look, knowing her friend was looking forward to sharing a room at a competition for the first time in a long time.

As a group they traveled upstairs, packed into three elevators. Kaylie found their room easily enough.

"I mean it ladies, twenty minutes, not a second longer," Sasha called out over the chatter of the girls settling into their rooms.

Cassie giggled. "Why would it take twenty minutes to drop off our bags and put on a leo?"

Kaylie smiled and rolled her eyes affectionately. "Because Lauren never goes to any arena, podium training or competition, without her braids up to standard and those can take a while."

"They do always look awesome," Cassie said, twirling her dark brown hair around a finger, examining her reflection in the long mirror against the wall, probably considering how Lauren's signature brains would look in her hair.

Kaylie nodded, setting her suitcase on the luggage rack and digging through it for a training leo and a track suit to go over it. She'd never really spoken to the younger gymnast and her teammates, all of whom would move up into the senior elite category next year just before the push towards the Olympics. Maybe Summer was right about bonding with the younger girls. After all, what could it hurt?

"You must be excited," the young junior continued. "It's your first all around competition since…." Cassie trailed off, biting her lip and wrinkling her nose at the faux pas.

Kaylie turned to her and smiled reassuringly. "Since World trials," she finished for her. "It's okay. I am excited. I'm going to go out there and show everyone that I'm back."

Cassie looked relieved and nodded furiously. "I'm really excited too," she gushed, throwing herself backwards onto her bed. "This is the first time I really get to compete with all the best gymnasts in the country and show what I can do. Sasha said I could do both my vaults tomorrow too."

"That's great, Cassie. It means he has confidence in you as a gymnast and what you're capable of under pressure."

"I hope so."

"Sasha wouldn't tell you to do anything unless he thought you were ready for it, more than ready," Kaylie reassured her. "You know what he's always saying, never do anything in competition until you can make it look easy."

Only ten minutes after Sasha's twenty-minute deadline, they managed to all be down in the lobby. Glaring at Lauren, who arrived unapologetically late, Sasha ushered them through the corridors of the hotel's main floor towards the MGM Garden Arena, usually the venue for boxing matches and concerts, but for two nights would house the nation's top junior and senior gymnasts.

"The casino is off limits for the duration of our stay," Sasha's voice echoed down the hallway.

"The casino, but not the stores," Kelly said, gleefully.

Lauren rolled her eyes. "Overpriced tourist traps."

Kelly shrugged, obviously not bothered by the mark-upped merchandise of Vegas's infamous shops.

Lauren nudged her in the ribs and rolled her eyes. "What's there to do here _besides_ hang out in the casino?"

"Gymnastics," Payson murmured from behind them.

"Oh, are you speaking again?" Lauren asked, looking at Payson over her shoulder. "I wasn't sure if you still could since you haven't uttered a word all morning."

Payson shrugged. "I was visualizing," she said, not looking the least bit perturbed by Lauren's sharp tone.

"Visualizing," Kaylie said and shook her head. "It's podium training, Pay, not Olympic trials."

"I have to visualize whenever I debut a new skill or rather an new-old skill," Payson said, brow wrinkling.

Kaylie nodded, thinking she understood. "The double layout on floor?"

"I thought Sasha said it wasn't ready," Kelly piped up from next to her.

"Hmmm? Oh, no, not the double layout," Payson said, distractedly.

"Ladies," Sasha said, cutting off Kaylie's question about which skill Payson would be debuting. "We are the best club in the country, let's walk in there like professionals, please."

Sasha led them through an archway and into the arena proper. Kaylie could almost imagine the boxing ring in place of the four apparatuses set up on the raised floor. That's what this competition was, when it came down to it, a giant boxing match where the pretenders would be separated from the contenders. The girls who stood out at this competition would be asked to attend the American Cup, placed on the team for the Pacific Rim Championships and pave their way to the Olympic team.

"We're on vault first," Sasha said. "Be aggressive today, hit your routines and let's try to get in two rotations on each apparatus. The judges are here so lets make as positive an impression as we can."

Kaylie cringed. Of course they were on vault first. She was the reining World silver medalist on the apparatus and now she would be lucky if she managed to qualify for the vault even final here at this competition.

As they approached the well just below the vault platform and the other girls began to spread out and remove their warm-ups, Kaylie visualized the new vault she and Sasha were working on. It was a handspring forward onto the horse with a layout full twist off. The degree of difficulty was only a five point nine, but with Sasha's help she intended on upgrading it to a handspring forward, layout with one and a half twists, which would get her vault DOD back up to a six point three, just two tenths of a point less than the Amanar, the vault she competed at Worlds. It was simply beyond her physical abilities now that she was focusing on building muscle mass as an all-around gymnast again.

Still, even knowing that her goals were long term and that the Olympics were still almost a full year away, Kaylie hated showing up to this invitational appearing as if she'd downgraded the apparatus that earned her the spot on the world's team and the only real individual success she had since her return to the sport.

"Seniors first, " Sasha called from the platform, checking his clipboard and setting up the springboard and safety mat. "Kaylie and Lauren, both vaults, then Payson and Kelly before we get the juniors up here."

Kaylie turned to Lauren and furrowed her brow. "He has you doing two vaults?" she asked, a lump settling in her stomach. She hadn't been paying much attention to Lauren's training schedule of late, but she thought she would have noticed a new vault.

"Yeah," Lauren said, adjusting her wrist guards. "I've been working it while you guys are working bars."

She bit her lip in contrition and opened her mouth to apologize, but Lauren was already moving towards the end of the run. Sasha nodded to her and Kaylie and the other Rock girls watched as Lauren's feet pounded down the vault carpet, ricocheting off the springboard, a half turn onto the horse and a double twisting layout off, the landing nearly perfect, just a shuffle of her feet necessary to keep her steady.

Kaylie's jaw dropped. How had she missed this? When had Lauren upgraded her Tsukahara one and a half to a double? Her mind was still reeling as Lauren moved towards her for her second vault.

"Great job, Lauren," two of the juniors echoed in unison from the floor below and that shook Kaylie into consciousness.

"Wow," she said, smiling at her best friend.

"Thanks," Lauren said, before returning to the edge of the carpet, waiting for Sasha's signal.

Then as Lauren flew down towards the horse once again and powered straight onto the springboard this time, a handspring layout with one and a half twists, the same vault she was hoping to upgrade to…eventually…Kaylie's heart nearly stopped. Lauren landed perfectly this time, on the center line, raising her hands in salute before turning and embracing Sasha whose expression was measured, but he was obviously please with the result.

"Kaylie, you next," Sasha shouted, forcing her back into reality once more as she tried to come to grips with the idea that Lauren, of all people, suddenly had a six tenths of a point degree of difficulty advantage on her. The Queen of the Beam had, if the expressions on the faces of the NGO members milling around were any indication, just surpassed her as the best vaulter in the country and they hadn't even competed yet.

"Kaylie!" Sasha's voice broke through again.

"You okay?" Kelly asked from just behind her, concern clearly evident in her tone of voice.

Kaylie took a deep breath and then another, before nodding. "Fine," she said, pushing all of it to the side. She couldn't control how everyone else trained or performed, the only thing she could control was her execution and that was enough, it had to be.

It was by sheer muscle memory she managed to perform both her vaults before moving down into the well with Lauren to watch Payson and Kelly run their vaults, making room for the juniors to get up on the podium.

"Good job," Lauren said as they sat down on the chairs provided for them, watching Payson fly towards the vault, a half on, one and a half layout off, a vault out of a six point five, but since Payson only trained one vault, she would not be eligible for the vault event finals.

"Thanks, you too," Kaylie said. "That handspring layout was awesome. I didn't know you'd upgraded the Tsuk."

"Again, while you were working on bars, I was in the pit adding the extra half twist," Lauren said, smiling. "I mean it totally sucks that I'm not competing all-around anymore, but Sasha thinks with all the extra training I'm putting in on vault that I have a shot at two individual medals in London."

"Nice Tsuk double," Kelly said as she and Payson approached from finishing their vault runs.

Lauren rolled her eyes at Kelly, but managed to say, "Thanks," before sashaying away towards her gym bag.

Kaylie, momentarily distracted from her vault worries by Lauren's pettiness, smiled tightly at her future roommate. "She'll come around eventually. I promise."

Kelly just shrugged, obviously not all that upset that Lauren didn't like her.

"Alright, Cassie, let's go," Sasha's voice echoed from the other end of the podium and Kaylie looked up in time to see her roommate for this competition flying down the runway towards the vault into the most perfect Amanar she'd ever seen. It was tough to tell from her position, but it looked like the young gymnast had room to triple the layout if she wanted to.

Silence reigned in the arena until suddenly people began murmuring, the buzz of what just happened flying through the air. Cassie Bartlet was age eligible for the Olympics and if she could stay healthy, the United States would be a force to be reckoned with. They had just separated themselves from the rest of the World. Three vaulters, Payson, Cassie and Lauren, with sky-high degrees of difficulty, would go a long way towards securing a team gold in London.

"What was that?" Kaylie whispered furiously.

"An Amanar," Payson provided helpfully, having finally broken from her visualizing haze long enough to watch someone else perform.

Kaylie simply gaped at her in disbelief. Payson blinked, and then rolled her eyes. "You mean you didn't know she had one? Kaylie, she competed it at junior nationals, she won the junior vault title by like three points."

"She said Sasha was letting her do both her vaults here for the first time," Kaylie said, frowning, trying to remember the earlier conversation. "What's her other…"

The question was quickly answered as Cassie hit a round off, half on layout with one and a half twists, the same vault that Payson competed.

"She did a round off half on layout full at juniors, but she's been staying late upgrading to the one and a half for months," Payson said.

Cassie Bartlet had two vaults out of a six point five DOD. Kaylie felt that knot from earlier grow, pushing up from her stomach into her chest. She took a deep breath and tried to fight the growing panic, but it was nearly impossible. Only two girls from each country could qualify for a vault final at the Olympics and almost a full year before the games, Kaylie knew she wouldn't be one of them.

What the hell was she going to do?

* * *

><p>The first rotation of podium training ended with the head judge sounding off an air horn. The pounding behind his eyes and aching in nearly every fiber of his body had not ceased, but Sasha couldn't help but be pleased by what he just witnessed, even if the arena's lights were making his headache worse. He grimaced and forced the pain, both physical and otherwise, to the back of his mind. He had to focus on the girls.<p>

The spectators, mostly media and NGO members, were still buzzing from the Rock's vault rotation and Sasha allowed himself a small smile of pride. It was a long term plan, a strategy of epic proportions, but with just five spots on the Olympic team in London, Sasha was determined to fill as many of those spots with Rock girls as possible.

A team that small would require each member to be strong on multiple events. It was just a matter of identifying where the team weaknesses were and he'd already found one. Balance beam. To ensure a victory during the team competition the NGO would need a team that could keep up with the Chinese on beam. There was no way to compete with them on uneven bars, at least not up and down the roster, but on beam it was possible and with the USA's major strengths on vault and floor, the NGO needed solid beam routines to round out the team final. He'd worked with all of his girls after Worlds, upgrading and fine tuning, in fact it was one of the major considerations in his decision to have Lauren drop uneven bars from her training entirely.

Sasha watched stoically as the girls lined up facing the judges' table and acknowledged the judging panel, before they dispersed towards the chalk bowl, beginning to warm up.

"Seniors then juniors again," he said, wanting the steadier senior competitors to lead their younger teammates on each apparatus, hopefully easing the nerves of the juniors. "Kaylie, you first."

Sasha knew Kaylie was upset about her vault downgrade. He read it on her face nearly every day at training. He could see the tortured look in her eyes every time they worked on the event, but it was for the best. Physical capacities aside, vault was not meant to be the best event for a gymnast like Kaylie Cruz. Her biggest asset was her ability to perform, to charm the judges and to allow her natural expressiveness to shine through.

"Let's go, Kaylie," Sasha said, nodding encouragingly at the National Champion as she mounted the beam. The core of her routine was the same, but six weeks out from Worlds, she was landing her triple twist dismount consistently in training. If she landed it now the arena would buzz again with the same sort of excitement they'd generated on vault. With her triple twist, Kaylie's beam DOD would be a six point one, pushing her possible score into the high fifteens.

The heavy drum beat of the floor music echoing through the hall for one of the other competitors pounded into his head as Kaylie ran solidly through her tumbling pass, a punch front, directly connected to a back handspring layout step out. Solid.

Just her leap combination and then the dismount, a round off into the triple twist, landing a little short, Kaylie forced her body around and then saluted before walking off the mat, shaking her head at herself. It was really only a two and a half and probably would be downgraded had the judges been scoring.

"Kaylie," Sasha stopped her before she could get too far, jogging over to her as Lauren began running through her routine. "What happened? You've been landing that triple for weeks."

Kaylie looked up at him and shrugged before her eyes darted away. There was an emotion in her expression that Sasha didn't like, but couldn't identify. It wasn't fear or anger.

"Kaylie," he began again.

"I'm fine Sasha. I'll get the triple tomorrow. I don't know what happened, it was weird, probably just a little tired from the flight," she said, her eyes still not meeting his.

He nodded, a sharp pain behind his eyes pulsing through his skull as he did. "Alright, go grab some water."

Glancing up, Lauren was nearly finished with her routine. Sasha leapt down from the podium to watch her two and a half twists dismount for crossed ankles from the judges' vantage point, a problem that not only incurred major deductions, but also could result in an injury.

"Nice job, Lauren," he called out as the World bronze medalist on the event stuck her landing cold.

"Seven point two," a familiar voice said from behind him.

"Spot on," Sasha said turning and quirking a grin at his friend and former rival, Marty Walsh.

"How'd you get her to take out that ridiculous body roll and the beam hump she's been doing since she was twelve?" Marty asked.

"I upped her DOD to seven point two," Sasha said, as he took Marty's extended hand and shook it firmly. "Apparently bronze doesn't go with her complexion as well as gold."

Marty snorted. "I'll bet."

"Something you wanted, Marty?" Sasha asked as Kelly leapt onto the beam from the springboard like a bullet train. He crossed his arms over his chest watching her carefully, especially since her ankle had been acting up lately.

"Actually yes, I wanted to talk about Kelly."

Sasha nodded, having expected as much. "She's doing fine. Better than fine I'd say. She's made friends; she's away from that mother of hers."

Marty nodded fiercely. "Good."

"She hired MJ," Sasha added.

"Oh?" Marty said, attempting to sound casual and failing miserably.

Sasha couldn't help it, the smirk simply spilled out onto his face. "Bet you're almost glad Kelly left."

"I wouldn't say that," Marty said, though Sasha could hear the relief in his voice that he didn't have to deal with MJ on a regular basis. "Besides, Sophia Peterson, formerly of Houston, heard about Kelly leaving and decided to make a move to Denver Elite."

Kelly dismounted the beam with a double pike, just a small step back on her landing, but a nice routine all in all.

"Junior All-Around National Champion," Sasha said, impressed. "I've got a girl that's going to give her a run for her money this year."

"Cassie Bartlet," Marty said, "with her nearly perfect Yurchenko two and a half."

"Junior Nationals should be fun," Sasha said.

"You know what's going to be even more fun?" Marty retorted. "Olympic Trials. Five spots, nine or ten possible candidates. Those decisions will be….difficult."

"Hmm," Sasha agreed, as Payson mounted the beam with her now signature move, the round off half twist to a handstand. "Some more than others."

"Looks like the old Payson is back," Marty murmured.

"Old Payson?" Sasha asked, intrigued. Marty knew Payson better than most people. He trained her for four years and it seemed he had some insight into her mental state at the moment, though he was totally ignorant of the cause.

"Yeah, that steely look on her face. I haven't seen that since, well it's been a couple of years now, since before she got hurt."

Sasha's brow furrowed. Payson was different surely, but the change was fairly recent. "Before she broke her back?" he clarified.

They watched together as she gracefully flew into the air into a switch ring leap, head thrown back, losing sight of the beam, but creating a beautiful image, hovering several feet over the beam before landing lightly, an aesthetic the judges ate up.

"No, before she _hur_t her back, before the disk became a recurring problem." Marty said, shaking his head. "I keep forgetting you were in exile back then. You've never really seen a totally healthy Payson Keeler have you? You've seen her compete in pain and on the comeback trail, but not…"

"Perfect," Sasha whispered as Payson pushed up onto a toe and leg extended out behind her as she spun in arabesque.

"Healthy," Marty corrected. "This is what she's like, stoic, focused, probably silent too."

Sasha nodded. All the behaviors Marty was describing were there, but that wasn't the Payson he knew, it wasn't his Payson, the young woman who could render an entire arena silent just several notes into her floor routine.

They watched together as Payson steadied herself at the end of the beam before flying across the four inches, two back handsprings into the arabian double front dismount.

Marty chuckled and clapped Sasha on the shoulder. "A seven on the dot?" he asked.

Sasha turned to Marty and smiled, despite the confusion he still felt. "Olympic trials should be _a lot_ of fun."

* * *

><p>Podium training was awesome. Lauren smiled to herself as she finished packing her gym bag. She hit all her routines, including stuck landings on beam and three of her four tumbling passes on floor. She even found herself feeling relieved during the bars rotation as the other girls ran through their routines. Bars were always high stress for her and now it was one less thing to worry about.<p>

"Circus is in town," Kelly said as they all made their way towards the exit. Several recognizable sports agents, including MJ and Payson's agent Pete were milling around the entrance to the arena.

"Wait, KP isn't that…" Kaylie started.

"…your mom?" Lauren finished, as they spied Sheila Baboyan holding court with several of her colleagues.

Payson yanked her headphones from her ears and whipped around to face them. "Didn't you file that restraining order?" she asked.

"Restraining order?" Lauren asked, a sharp pang echoing in her chest. Her own father had filed a restraining order on her mother.

"No, I never got it. I mean, she's my mother," Kelly said and for a moment, Lauren felt a modicum of respect for Kelly Parker. "I'm, I'm just going to…" she trailed off and then strode quickly out of the arena.

"Maybe I should go check on her," Kaylie said, frowning.

Lauren shook her head. "No, let me."

Payson and Kaylie stared at her in disbelief. She just rolled her eyes. "Look, I'm not her best friend, but I know all about crazy moms and you guys just…don't."

She pushed through the crowd, taking the same path she spied Kelly's devil-bunned head disappearing down moments before. Turning a corner, she ended up in a hallway. Left or right?

Then she heard a sniffle, followed by a soft hushing sound.

"Hey, it's okay," a familiar masculine voice murmured. "What happened?"

Lauren crept just a few steps in the direction of the sound and saw a small alcove where Kelly Parker was standing wrapped tightly in the strong arms of Austin Tucker. Thoughts of comforting her teammate flew from her mind as her original mission took precedence. It couldn't be more perfect. It was _exactly_ what she hoped to find.

"My mother showed up and…" Kelly's breathing grew harsher.

"Okay," Austin said, nodding and seemingly tightening the embrace. "It's okay, Kel. She can't hurt you anymore."

Lauren pulled her cellphone from her gym bag and quickly snapped a picture of them, before quietly retreating back towards the arena. She checked the photo and smiled to herself. They were holding each other, Kelly's head tucked under Austin's chin. It was an intimate embrace. This wasn't like last time with Payson and Sasha. This was obviously real. There _was_ something going on between Kelly and Austin. Once Kaylie saw it, she'd have her best friend back.

"Did you find her?" Kaylie asked as the found the Rock gymnasts gathered together by the elevators.

Lauren thought about revealing what she had now, but it wasn't the right time. She knew Kaylie was struggling with her routines, had seen evidence during each rotation of podium training. The last thing she wanted to do was throw her off her game even more right before competition.

"Nope," she said with a shrug. "Couldn't find her. Maybe she went back to her room."

Kaylie nodded. "That was really nice, going after her."

"I can be nice," Lauren said, affronted, but only for a moment, before smiling at Kaylie brightly.

Kaylie laughed and Lauren laughed with her as the elevator doors opened to take them back upstairs to their rooms. It was all falling into place and soon everything would be perfect.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: ***peeks head out from behind curtain and bites lip* I'm SO sorry this took so long. I'd say it's not my fault, but it's TOTALLY my fault because I created this story and this bit had to be told from Kaylie's POV for the most part and she's the most difficult character in the MIOBI universe to write, for me anyway. It took me three weeks to write the first section and then a few hours to write Sasha and Lauren's POVs. So if you really want to blame someone, blame Kaylie. ;-)

Everyone I'm sure has known for a couple of weeks now, but we're getting a season 3. My initial euphoria was muted when I considered all the possibilities of what they could do to these characters in a third season, but I suppose we'll just have to wait and see.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter, despite the long layout and I promise the next chapter shouldn't take nearly so long. We get to dive back into Payson's head and we'll be competing for the first time ever in this universe. Get ready, it's going to be fun!

Don't forget to review! You know I'm addicted to them.


	21. Chapter 21

"Live from Las Vegas, Nevada! Welcome to Universal Sports' coverage of the Toys for Tots Holiday Gymnastics Invitational. I'm Al Trautwig, alongside Elfie Schelgel and Tim Daggett. And it's not that I'm unhappy to see you guys, but I didn't think we'd be sitting in an arena watching gymnastics until the American Cup in March and yet here we are," Al Trautwig said, beginning the broadcast coverage.

"Here we are, Al," Tim Daggett agreed.

"It's incredible, just about two months after a fantastic showing for the United States Women's Gymnastics team at the World Championship in Rio, a team gold, the all-around gold won by Payson Keeler, Kaylie Cruz, Lauren Tanner and Kelly Parker all coming home with individual medals."

"Exactly, Al, but as so many fans of USA gymnastics like to point out, the year before the Olympics is generally successful for the United States, but since 1996 every team has fallen short of the ultimate Olympic goal, the team gold medal. This year it seems like the NGO is leaving nothing to chance and is going to take every opportunity they can to get their girls competing on a podium and in front of judges."

"They want to make sure they take the right girls to London next Summer and this is the first step," Elfie added. "There are twenty four gymnasts here today, both juniors and seniors, but every single one of them is age eligible for the Olympics."

"Now a competition like this, this is something gymnastics fans, the die hards, have been calling for, for years, right? Getting all the girls who can possibly compete at the Olympics games together at the same competition as many times as possible?"

"It is, Al, and this will be the first of four times that will happen between now and the Olympic Games. This invitational, then the Cover Girl Classic, then the National Championships, followed by the Olympic Trials. After those competitions there should be no doubt in anyone's minds who deserves those five coveted spots on the Olympic team."

"And don't forget, the Pacific Rim Championships are also this year, so that's an event where we might see some girls gaining international experiences as well," Elfie added.

The camera panned over the arena, packed with gymnastics fans before focusing in on vault.

Al's voice echoed over the large panning shot. "We're starting out on vault where Rocky Mountain Gymnastics has an entire rotation all to themselves. Coach Sasha Belov brought eight athletes with him to this competition, four seniors and four juniors, the most of any club."

Elfie jumped in, "And not just four seniors, but four of the six girls who were on the World Championship team and based on what I saw in podium training, it's entirely possible that _all_ the girls on the Olympic team could be from the Rock."

"It's a possibility that's for sure, but there are many talented gymnasts here today that will challenge for one of those five spots."

"We'll see one of them on this apparatus, All-Around World Champion, Payson Keeler is up first," Al said.

"You're right, Al. The United States has many talented vaulters, but there must be something in the water in Boulder, Colorado that helps develop vaulting skills. The Rock has a higher degree of difficulty on vault than most countries do."

"Here's Payson Keeler with the vault she stunned the world with during the Team Final in Rio, a round off half twist onto the vault and a one and a half twist off, simply incredible!" Tim said.

"Absolutely flawless, though I'm sure the judges will find something to deduct. She just gets so much momentum off her block, it's stunning to watch," Elfie added.

"Well Payson Keeler gets this competition off to a great start with a 15.9 on vault."

Al chimed in, "And unlike the last time we saw her, she lands this vault on two feet rather than one."

"Next up, Lauren Tanner who has upgraded her vault since Worlds and will actually be competing two huge vaults today in an effort to win a vault title here."

* * *

><p>Mark watched as Payson saluted the judges and jogged down the podium stairs into the well that ran between the apparatuses. A hug from Kaylie and another from Kelly Parker followed by several of her junior teammates hesitatingly offering high fives were caught on camera as Payson looked up at the scoreboard, off camera. A graphic popped up just under her name.<p>

Payson Keeler: D Score: 6.5 E Score: 9.400 Total: 15.9

Mark smiled, but the smile faded as he watched Payson grimace and then simply focus upon pushing up the sleeves of her leotard, wrapping them down with rubber bands and pulling on her grips for bars, the Rock's next rotation.

That was an expression he had not seen on his daughter's face in a long time. Usually, despite her inherent seriousness, Payson was able to find joy in a well-executed routine, especially in competition. Her reaction wasn't even the stoicism that she had as a junior, but seemed hollow, totally devoid of emotion.

Mark exhaled sharply through his nose, thinking back to the Rock's fundraiser. It had to be connected to what he witnessed. Sasha drowning himself in alcohol, nearly making an idiot out of himself during the bidding war for Payson's gymnastics lessons, staring at each other across the room for the entire night, there was no way that the current emptiness he saw in his daughter's eyes was caused by anything else.

He felt the anger rising in his blood, his teeth clenching together just as the camera focused on Sasha, setting up the springboard for Lauren's second vault. He was more sure of it now than ever, there was something going on between Payson and Sasha and despite vowing to himself not to overreact until he had more facts, he felt the need to confide in the only other person in the world who would understand.

"What did I miss?" Kim asked, carrying a bowl of popcorn into the living room.

Mark took it from and made room on the couch for her. "A flawless vault from our daughter," he said. "And good first vault for Lauren Tanner."

"Come on, Lo!" the cameras caught Payson cheering for her teammate just prior to her second vault.

Mark grimaced, sidetracked for the moment. "It's amazing to me, how she can get past what Lauren did to her."

"She's an amazing kid, Mark, when are you going to figure that out?" Kim said, curling her feet under her as Lauren took off down the run and nailed a vault.

"Hmm," Mark hummed in agreement, before rededicating himself to his purpose. "Listen, Kim, I know we've talked about this before and that you think it's nothing, but I've noticed things."

Kim wrinkled her nose and frowned. "Noticed things?"

Mark exhaled heavily and tried to think of a way to explain what he saw the night before at the Rock Auction. He knew Kim didn't want to see it. She couldn't see the forest for the trees. She was simply too close to the situation, but Mark knew what he'd witnessed. He knew what a man in love looked like and he knew his daughter, better than perhaps anyone in the world.

"Mark?" Kim asked, wondering at his silence.

"At the auction, I was watching Payson," he began.

"Didn't she look gorgeous?" Kim cut in. "I've always told her she looks incredible in pink, but she never believed me."

Mark smiled and nodded. "She looked beautiful," he agreed, "and more than one young man noticed."

Kim rolled her eyes. "She's seventeen years old, Mark. Boys are going to be an issue eventually."

He sighed, knowing that was as good an opening as he was going to get. "It's become an issue, already, I think and it's not boys I'm worried about."

"What do you mean?" Kim asked, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"At the auction, Kim, I was watching her a little bit, more than a little bit," he admitted. "I watched her all night and so did someone else."

"Mark, I don't really understand what you're trying to tell me."

Mark set his mouth in a line; he hated beating around the bush, so finally he said, "Payson and Sasha spent the entire auction staring at each other."

Kim sighed. "Mark, I thought we talked about this."

"We did talk about it and I wanted to believe we were right, but you weren't watching them last night, Kim. You didn't see what I saw."

"And what did you see?"

Mark's fist clenched against his leg tightly. "He's in love with her, Kim. I saw it with my own eyes."

Kim just stared at him silently. "They've always been close. Since the day he showed up at the gym, they've been close, are you sure that it's not just…"

"I know what I saw, Kim. He was beating himself up over it, that much I could tell and she didn't look much better. I wouldn't say anything unless I was sure."

Kim's eyes flashed to the screen where the girls were moving on to their second rotation. "You're saying that Sasha is in love with our daughter," Kim said and Mark had to admit, it sounded ridiculous when she said it out loud.

"I'm telling you he sat next to me at the bar last night, drowning his sorrows in alcohol and staring at Payson on that stage."

"Well are you sure he wasn't staring at Summer? She was up on that stage too."

Mark shook his head. "A man doesn't drink himself into a stupor for a woman he _can_ have."

Kim was silent, though Mark could see the wheels spinning in her mind. "That son of a bitch," she muttered. "I _defended_ him."

Mark reached out and grabbed her hand. "Kim, I don't think anything has happened."

"Yet," Kim filled in the blank for him. "Nothing has happened _yet_."

"And here's Payson Keeler leading off for the Rock on bars after a solid vault rotation," Al Trautwig's voice echoed out of the television, drawing their attention.

Payson was standing, waiting for the judges to give her the green light. Mark didn't have to see the judge's signal to notice the change in Payson. She saluted then immediately her eyes flashed. She zeroed in on the fiberglass uneven bars. Stepping between the high bar and the low she swung up, pirouetting on the low bar before flying up to the high, twisting her body around, her momentum flinging her around into a handstand onto the high bar. She kept the swing going, pirouetting on the high bar then connecting it into a release.

Sasha stepped up onto the mat, his hands following Payson's motions, ghosting over her body as she flew through the air, but never touching, simply there to catch her if she fell. The symbolism was not lost on Mark.

He inhaled and exhaled as Payson flew down to the low bar, sliding up immediately into a handstand before transitioning back up, another release. Sasha finally moved away, allowing her room for her dismount, a triple twist.

She landed solidly, just a small shuffle of her feet before raising her arms over her head.

"Wow, Payson Keeler has upgraded her bars routine, a half twist to the Shaposhnikova and that piked Jaeger. Phenomenal," Tim Daggett said.

Payson simply walked off the podium again, the cameras following her. There was no embrace for her coach, the usual reaction in major competition for a hit routine. Her face was passive as her teammates congratulated her. Just like on vault, she simply watched for her score.

"And that's a huge score for Keeler, a 15.550," Elfie Schlegel said. "That's likely the highest we'll see all day."

Kim exhaled and her hand unclenched beneath his. "Do you think she feels…do you think she loves him?"

Mark shook his head and ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "She's seventeen years old, would she even know if she did?"

"So, what do we do?" she asked. "Do we talk to him? Do we talk to her? Do we just…wait and see?"

It was a rare thing for Mark to see his wife so shaken. She was the strong one, the one that kept them going, but he didn't have an answer for her and that killed him.

He reached out and put his arm around her, letting her rest her head against his shoulder. "I don't know. I just don't know."

* * *

><p>"Let's go KP," Kaylie said from her seat, waiting for her turn on beam.<p>

Lauren cringed and looked away from her best friend. It was hard to keep the information to herself. She knew she would have to show her the picture of Austin and Kelly eventually, but she wanted to wait until after the competition ended tomorrow. She hated keeping it from her, but she knew this competition was difficult for Kaylie. She wasn't all the way back, not on vault, not on any of the events really.

Her vaults were downgraded and her bars routine was a shadow of what it had been before the anorexia and her obsession with that stupid round off arabian mount.

"Nice job, Kel!" Kaylie said, as Kelly finished her routine and came running off the podium.

Lauren looked up at the score and smirked. Kelly Parker was no threat on beam. Now, Payson on the other hand, she thought as she watched the World Champ mount the beam and work through a routine that wouldn't be out of place in the old heydays of the Romanian dominance of the sport.

She and her Dad used to watched footage of the Romanian teams Sasha's dad coached during the 80s and 90s. Payson flipped forward into a front aerial, before connecting it to a back handspring, layout step out. Lauren had the same series in her routine, though it looked totally different, the three inches of height and added flexibility Payson brought to the routine creating a different, but equally impressive effect.

Payson left the beam with her new dismount and Lauren pursed her lips. She wasn't sure if that was the skill Payson was talking about debuting at this invitational, but it seemed the double arabian was competition ready. Payson was a threat on beam now, but she still had a two tenths lead over her in start value.

"Nice job, Pay," KP called as Payson came down the stairs.

Lauren's eye twitched and she stepped forward and embraced Payson quickly. "Great dismount," she said.

Payson pulled away and tilted her head in confusion, which Lauren shook off with a smile, a smile that grew when she saw Payson's score, a 16.000, one tenth lower than hers, even with her added degree of difficulty.

"Come on, Kaylie you got this," Lauren cheered as Kaylie stepped up and waited for the judges to signal her.

"C'mon Kay!" KP yelled, coming up beside her.

Lauren eyed the former National and World Champion sideway and smirked. "You should drop this little act. I know what you're up to and soon everyone else will too."

Kelly turned to her, brow furrowed in confusion. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

Snorting, Lauren turned back to the beam and watched Kaylie leap onto it. "Right," she said, sarcastically.

* * *

><p>"And here's Kaylie Cruz on beam. The last time we saw this athlete on balance beam she was beating out Genghi Cho for a gold medal. Since then she's been through a lot, a battle with an eating disorder and working her way back into the All-Around," Al Trautwig began the commentary on Kaylie's routine.<p>

"So far so good, for Kaylie. A gorgeous split ring leap, called a Yang Bo. It's a creative move and a difficult one as she throws her head back and loses sight of the beam," Elfie explained.

"Now she struggled with her dismount during podium training. She came to this competition intending on dismounting with a triple twist, but during training it was really only a two and a half. Let's see what she does."

"Oh, well Tim, I'm not a gymnastics expert, but that looked like…" Al trailed off.

"That was only a double twist, which because it's not difficult enough, only a C-Level skill and at the elite level a D-Level skill is require, it's a built in deduction of two tenths of a point, plus she looses the difficulty of the triple twist as well."

"She stuck the landing, does that count for anything?" Al asked.

"It was as good a double twist as you can perform, but I have no idea why she didn't at least go for the two and a half," Elfie said.

"It seems Sasha Belov is wondering the same thing," Al added. "He and Kaylie are talking at the edge of the podium and now Sasha nods and pats her on the shoulder. I guess we all know what the first question will be in the post competition interviews."

* * *

><p>Payson looked up at the scoreboard and saw her name at the top, with nearly a two-point lead on the gymnast in second place, junior National Champion, Sophia Peterson, newly of Denver Elite.<p>

She stretched out her legs after warm-ups, trying to keep limber before her turn. Closing her eyes she could hear her floor music in her ears, visualizing her opening dance passage, the music building through her tumbling passes, hitting a crescendo during her second line of dance, launching into a switch ring leap combining it with a split leap, full turn.

Then there was a presence beside her. Her teeth clenched as she inhaled the spicy scent of his cologne and her eyes flickered open, her heart skipping a beat as his hand rested lightly on her shoulder, squeezing gently before moving away. Sasha hadn't uttered a word and the contact was fleeting, but her skin tingled from the touch nonetheless.

She shook herself from the brief haze as Kaylie rebounded nicely from her odd performance on beam with a solid floor routine and she made her way up onto the podium.

It was as if she no longer possessed her own body as the heavy pounding of drums and the violin echoed through the hall, emotion took over and she danced and tumbled and flew through the air. The memory of the smallest of touches and the briefest of kisses followed by the stronger and deeper emotions and the need that drove them closer and into a near frenzy the night of the auction powered her through until she collapsed down onto the mat, her breath heavy in her chest and the tears controlled behind her eyes.

Payson stood and raised her arms over her head as the crowd erupted around her.

The awards ceremony was a blur, the Rock taking two of the three all-around medals available that day. She watched Kelly take her bronze medal and Sophia receive her silver before she stood up on the gold podium, bending her head as Marcus McGowan, the NGO's newest Women's Team Coordinator placed the medal around her neck.

"Well done, Payson," he said, shaking her hand firmly.

"Thank you," she managed to choked out.

As she made her way back to her hotel room she vaguely remembered giving an interview or two, though she had no idea what she said to the reporters, she hoped she'd simply repeated the standard answers she usually recited after a competition.

Her mind was still whirling in confusion and not a little pain when she saw him, out of the corner of her eye, opening the door to his hotel room.

"Sasha," she called out softly, but he heard her. He always heard her.

He turned towards her then bent his head down to the floor, before opening his door and holding it open. It was as much as an invitation as she was going to get.

She brushed by him, the same scent from earlier swirling around her as she stepped into the darkened hotel room. Turning to face him, she was shocked to find him directly behind her, leaning into her. A tremor went through her entire body at his proximity. He took a step forward and then another and she followed his lead, backing up against the wall.

Leaning down, his mouth hovered above hers for a moment, pulling away sharply as she pushed up onto her toes, making her wait. His hands came up to grip her shoulders, holding her against the wall, before he finally brought his lips down in a bruising kiss, his tongue pushing into her mouth, his hands racing down her sides, around to her backside, lifting her from the ground and then pinning her to the wall with his hips.

It was aggressive and intense and Payson reveled in it, not drawing away from the hard press of his body as she had before, but pulling him closer. She relished the sharp nip of his teeth against her bottom lip, the way his hand buried into her hair, totally destroying her pristine bun, bobby pins flying to the ground, her hair spilling around her shoulders.

His other hand smoothed up the line of her hip, over her waist, cupping her breast and she pushed her shoulders back, eager for more of his touch when finally he pulled away harshly.

Sasha backed away, collapsing into the opposite wall of the room's tiny entryway; his breath coming in short puffs. He shook his head and leaned down, elbows against his thighs, his head falling between his knees.

Her lips still tingling from his harsh kisses, Payson stepped forward and laid a comforting hand on his head, her nails lightly scratching through his hair. She watched gooseflesh rise on the back of his neck, a small shiver running through him at her touch before her jerked away, standing up straight.

"Why did you…" he started and stopped, "you aren't supposed to…"

Payson shook her head having no idea what he as trying to say. "What? I'm not supposed to what?"

"Enjoy that," he bit out. "You're not supposed to want…"

Anger started to build in her, as she narrowed her eyes, finally becoming accustomed to the dark. She could see the tortured expression on his face. "I'm not supposed to enjoy that? Want you to touch me? Like it when you're a little rough, when you kiss me like you mean it?"

His fist clenched and pounded harshly against the wall. "Damn it, Payson, you're supposed to run away from a man like me, a man who…"

"A man who wants me? A man I want?" she finished for him again. He'd tried to scare her, tried to manipulate her into running away and staying away. What a self-righteous son of a bitch. Feeling a lump gathering in her throat, she shook her head violently. She was not going to let him see her cry. Not again.

"Screw you," she said, softly before turning away from him.

"Payson," he whispered, but she was already out the door and marching down the hallway and she didn't look back.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Well, I think I've hit new levels of angst, even for me. SO MUCH happened in this chapter and there's only more to come from Vegas. There's an athletes and coaches reception that night and a whole other day of competition the next day, so the fun is just getting started.

Sorry for the delay with this story, but rest assured, there's more coming!

As always, please review. I'm a review addict and this chapter (these last couple of chapters) totally kicked my ass, so a little love (or concrit) would be appreciated!

Also, I mentioned a while ago that I was starting to write my own original work. Check out my author profile for a link to my new blog, where I'll be posting my new story, "Game, Set, Match" a tale of life, love and tennis! 


	22. Chapter 22

Kelly Parker thought bronze medals were stupid. Most people, at least at first glance, couldn't tell if it was a bronze or a gold, especially if you weren't near the gold medal winner. She looked into the full-length mirror of her hotel room, the bronze All-Around medal hanging around her neck and bit her lip. Still, it was better than nothing.

She knew what her mother would say. Bronze wasn't the color champions wore. Bronze wasn't even first loser. Bronze shouldn't even exist. She shook her head and closed her eyes, trying to block Sheila's voice out her mind. Kelly knew the results of this all-around competition weren't life or death. Her upgraded vault was nearly ready and it was the first time she competed her floor routine since Nationals. She rocked the bars and the beam and tomorrow she would grab some more hardware to take home to her apartment.

First, however, there were NGO reps to greet and some sponsors to schmooze. MJ outlined a phenomenal sponsorship package for her and she was looking forward to meeting with several of them tonight.

Unzipping the garment bag, which hung in the room's closet she smirked at the dress. She planned on turning some heads tonight and hopefully managing to keep her mind off of one particular guy whose head was not allowed to turn.

Austin was a better friend than she imagined he was capable of being, to anyone, let alone her. Before they had Kaylie in common she considered him nothing more than an annoyance who happened to catch lightning in a bottle in Beijing. Now, he was someone she counted as a part of the surrogate family she was building and she didn't want to do anything to mess that up. Not even if her heart fluttered when he hugged the day before and especially not because she felt totally safe in his arms, even when she was freaking out about her mother. He belonged to Kaylie and she respected that, totally and completely. She just needed to find someone else and this dress was going to help her do it.

She reached up to take the dress from its hanger when someone pounded on her door. Kelly checked the peephole and quickly opened it. Standing at her threshold was a freshly showered Payson Keeler holding several shopping bags and a makeup case.

Kelly tilted her head curiously and stepped back to allow her room to walk in.

"I need your help," Payson said, biting her lip, obviously unsure of herself.

Raising a speculative brow, Kelly smiled. "With what?"

Payson huffed out a breath and looked her dead in the eye. "I need to look hot tonight, not pretty, not graceful, not all those things they always call me."

Kelly laughed and nodded. "You came to the right place." She turned into her room, finding her junior teammate digging through her suitcase. "Oh, Jessica. Payson's going to get ready in here tonight. Why don't you go to her room and get ready with Paige?" She left no room for argument and just moments later they had the room to themselves.

Twenty minutes later, she stood next to Payson holding large, dangly hoop earrings out to her. "They'll draw his eye to your neck. _Whoever_ he is," Kelly said, raising an eyebrow at Payson.

Looking back at her through the mirror on the wall, Payson took them gratefully and sighed. "Kelly…"

"No, I get it," Kelly said, raising her hands in mock surrender. "I get you can't tell me even though I just helped you look _like this_."

She gestured towards Payson whose outfit was totally uncharacteristically sexy, a pair of tight blue jeans paired with a sheer, white, oversized, off the shoulder blouse, layered atop a black sequined bra. Her midriff wasn't bare, but clearly visible and the gossamer like material over it made the look sexier than if the skin was totally exposed. Her hair was pulled up loosely held in a twist at the back of her head, soft strands framing her face.

"You don't think it's too much?" Payson asked, turning back towards her reflection.

Kelly shook her head. "No, you look hot, like you wanted and don't try to change the subject."

Payson sighed and bit her lip. "Look, I can't tell you. Nothing's happened, not really, and nothing probably will _ever_ happen, but I just…I want him to…" she trailed off.

"You want him to see what he's missing," Kelly filled in the blank for her, having been there once and maybe, despite herself, she was there at that very moment.

"Is that horrible of me?" Payson asked, sitting down on KP's bed.

"Payson, you've got about a lifetime's of horrible saved up for whenever you want to use it and it still wouldn't draw even with the amount of good will you've put out. I mean every night that passes when you don't strangle Lauren Tanner in her sleep earns you like a billion 'can do whatever the hell she wants because she hasn't committed justifiable homicide' points."

Laughing, Payson stood and examined her reflection again. "Are you _sure_ it's not too much?"

"You're going to knock his socks off."

* * *

><p>Austin checked his phone quickly, standing in the elevator. He was a little late, but it wasn't his fault. His agent had him talking to a few Kobalt reps and he wasn't able to disentangle himself for a good twenty minutes. Then Max asked him to introduce him to the coach from All Olympia in Los Angeles, which took another half hour.<p>

A cheerful ding echoed in the elevator as the doors slid open to the lobby. Quickly scanning around he found the two people he was searching for easily.

"Emily," he said, raising a hand in greeting. "Damon."

He approached the couple quickly, smiling as he saw their hands were joined together.

"Hey Austin," Emily said, her hand sliding from Damon as she stepped up to hug him. "It's so good to see you." He heard a hitch in her voice and Austin pulled back, full of concern, but Emily just shook her head. "It's nothing. It's these stupid hormones, I'm so emotional lately."

"Understatement," Damon said, but he was smiling. Emily swatted at him, but shot Austin a watery smile as well. He nodded towards Austin, which was big of him since the last time they saw each other Austin had just punched him in the gut.

"Young, good to see you. I'm sorry I couldn't find you guys before the competition started, but my agent had me with some sponsors." As the excuse fell from his lips it sounded weak, but he shrugged helplessly and they shook it off.

"No big deal," Emily said. "It was nice to just watch gymnastics again, smell the chalk, hear the pounding on the floor and the beam. Everyone looked so great." She sniffled again and Damon put a comforting arm around her shoulder. "I'm sorry, I just can't help it. I'm just going to go to the bathroom for a second. I'll be right back."

Emily left, leaving Austin and Damon to stand there awkwardly for a moment.

Austin inhaled and let out a heavy breath before turning to the pizza guy cum rock star. "Listen, man. I'm sorry about the whole punching thing," he said. "Kaylie explained and I was out of line."

Damon shook it off quickly. "No, I was being an idiot. Kaylie was a good friend to me. Things were just so messed up with me and Em and all the crap I was going through with my record company, I never should have kissed her or dragged her into any of it."

Austin's breath left him, like he'd been punched in the gut. He cleared his throat harshly and then shook his head. "You and Kaylie kissed?" he asked.

Eyes growing wide, Damon's mouth dropped open silently. "Shit," he cursed. "I thought she would have told you. It was stupid and it meant absolutely nothing."

"Right," Austin said, reeling in the instinct to punch the other guy in the gut, _again._ He and Kaylie weren't together at the time, so it shouldn't bother him, but there was nothing he could do to banish the image of Kaylie and Damon kissing. It was probably right after Emily and Damon broke up, or maybe before that; Emily pregnant, desperately looking for a solution to her problems and suddenly her fleeing to Vegas made all the sense in the world.

"Anyway, Emily told me what you did, offering to help her out financially when you thought I was going to flake out on her," Damon said, "and I just wanted to say thank you. She didn't feel like she had any friends left at that point and your email, it made her realize that she did."

Austin shrugged. "I knew she'd never take the money, but look, if you guys need anything."

"Thanks man," Damon said, "but I finished my album and the record company loves it. Everything's good."

"Good," Austin said, still trying unsuccessfully to get rid of the image of his girlfriend and the father of Emily's baby kissing.

Emily appeared again, smiling brightly at him and he managed to cover his suddenly dark mood well enough.

"All better," Emily said, all traces of her tears gone. "So tell me everything, all the Rock drama.

Austin laughed, putting on a good enough front to fool both of them. "I have some advice for the party then," he said. "Stick close to Lauren tonight. It should be _entertaining." _

* * *

><p>Sasha tugged at the knot of his tie, allowing the silk to choke him for a moment before he loosened it, taking off the wretched thing and tossing it across the room. He unbuttoned the top button of his shirt and sighed at his reflection.<p>

He was a bloody moron, the worst kind of fool. He swore to himself that he would fix the mess he made with Payson and he only made it worse. He had no idea what made him invite her into his room, he was operating on autopilot, simply following his instincts.

Her floor routine during the all-around competition today was the most breathtakingly beautiful expression he'd ever seen. He taught her to tell a story with her body, to pull the audience and force them to pay attention, but he never thought he would fall victim to her abilities and in such a horribly misguided way.

As soon as she said his name, he was lost to her. And he hadn't regained his senses until she was pressed into the wall, writhing against him, their teeth clashing, their bodies burning for each other.

"Damn it," Sasha cursed under his breath before rearing back and punching the wall roughly. Now he had to go to this ridiculous reception and mingle and pretend like everything was fine, when really all he wanted to do was fine a quiet corner with the girl he was desperately and hopelessly in love with and beg for her forgiveness.

A knock at his door drew him from his self-loathing and he opened it to find Summer waiting for him.

"It's time. We should get the girls and head downstairs," she said, checking her watch, though he was sure she already knew the time.

"Right," he said, pulling at the cuffs of his shirt.

"I already approved Lauren's dress, so you don't have to worry about that," Summer said, as they walked towards the girls' rooms down the hall.

"I wasn't," he said. "I don't care what they wear."

Summer stopped and looked at him with her eyes wide. "You should. They represent the Rock and their country."

Sasha groaned, a headache rapidly developing between his eyes. He pinched at the bridge of his nose and shook his head. "They represent themselves, they're all beautiful girls," he said, cutting himself off before his thoughts and his words began to mesh and dig him into even more trouble.

Doors around them began to open and the chatter of female voices reverberated in his ears, but a flash of blonde hair down the hallway caught his eye. She turned in his direction and let her eyes meet his for a fleeting moment, but it was enough. She was playing with him. He watched her laugh at something Kelly said, before she looked away and turned her back on him.

Sasha blinked rapidly trying to make sure he wasn't seeing things when Summer's gasp from beside him confirmed it.

The girls were all striding down the hallway towards the elevators and there was nothing Sasha could do except follow them. His eyes betraying his mind as they watched the sway of her hips, a little more pronounced tonight than usual, again, he assumed for his benefit.

Summer grabbed his arm and pulled him to a halt.

"Aren't you going to say anything to her?" she asked, clearly upset by Payson's outfit.

He raised a brow at her. "And what would you have me say to her?"

"That her outfit is completely inappropriate. Sasha…"

"Summer, if you want to go say something to her, go for it, but Payson's wardrobe choices aren't any of my business," he said.

"What would Kim think?" Summer shot at his back as he walked away from her.

What would Kim think? Payson would never wear something like that in front of her mother, but her mother wasn't here. He briefly considered letting Summer talk to Payson, the crueler part of him wondering, in her current frame of mind, where exactly Payson would tell Summer to shove her fashion advice, but he couldn't do that. This was his mess and he had to fix it.

"I'll talk to her."

* * *

><p>Lauren stepped out of the elevator and immediately straightened her dress and hair in case any photographers or random people with their phones out and primed were in the area.<p>

Kelly exited just behind her and scoffed. "Don't worry, Lauren, no one will be worried about what you look like after tonight."

Rolling her eyes, Lauren scoffed. "If you're talking about that ridiculous bet, it's off. You totally cheated, moving your auction slot like that. We agreed not to interfere with the auction and you're little _bathroom break_ was a clear violation."

Kelly shook her head. "You're just bitter you lost. Kaylie, Pay, back me up here."

Payson shrugged. "She did get the higher bid, Lo."

"Please, you just want to see me humiliated, like you were after your stupid little kiss with your middle aged boyfriend."

"And on that note, I'm out of here," Payson said, glaring at Lauren and walking away.

"What is she even wearing? She looks ridiculous," Lauren said, as they watched Payson draw every male eye as she strode away from their group towards the ballroom entrance.

"She looks great," Kelly defended. "Unlike some people, Payson knows that less is more. Leaving something to the imagination is sexy." Lauren watched Kelly's eyes take in her outfit. It wasn't nearly as revealing as her dress from the auction, but Kelly's point was made, nonetheless.

Lauren pursed her lips and smirked, remembering a vital piece of information she had on KP. "Right, I'd really prefer if you didn't look at me like that, it freaks me out and spare me your little crush on Payson. I mean it would be okay if she swung that way, I guess, but after she went after Sasha, I'm nearly positive she's straight, sorry to burst your bubble."

Kelly's eyebrows shot up. "I have _no_ idea what you're talking about. Are you claiming insanity to get out of the bet? Pathetic," she said.

"You don't want to mess with me, Parker," Lauren said, taking a step closer to the girl, her jaw clenching.

"Guys, c'mon, it's going to be a long night. Can't we just get along?" Kaylie said, literally standing between them.

"No," Lauren snapped. "You really want to do this now? Fine." She turned to Kaylie. "Do you want to know the real reason why I didn't talk to her after podium training?"

Kaylie's eyes narrowed in confusion. "Lo, what are you talking about?"

"I found her, after she ran off because her mom showed up. I found her, but she was already with someone else. She was with _Austin_," she said, pulling her phone out of her purse and pulling up the incriminating picture and shoving it under Kaylie's nose.

"Did I hear someone call my name?" Austin asked, approaching them with Emily and Damon in tow.

Kaylie whirled on him and said, "Is it true?"

Austin's smile slipped a little. "Is what true?"

"This," Kaylie said, grabbing the phone out of Lauren's hand, showing him the picture.

"What is that?" Austin asked, squinting at it.

"That's you and one of my friends," Kaylie bit out from between clenched teeth.

Lauren did her best to keep her face neutral, fighting the smile as she realized she'd have her best friend back and sooner rather than later.

* * *

><p>Kaylie waited a second and then another. "Well?" she asked, looking at Austin and then back at Kelly.<p>

"Kaylie, it's not what it looks like," Austin began to explain.

"At all," Kelly said. "I was upset, about my mother and I ran into Austin and I just, I needed someone and he was there."

Austin nodded. "That's all it was, Kaylie. She's my friend and she needed someone."

Taking a deep breath, Kaylie wanted desperately to believe them. "So there's nothing between you guys, you're just friends."

"Absolutely," they chorused together just a little too quickly. Kaylie's eyes narrowed and she looked up into Austin's and then down to meet Kelly's gaze.

"Please," Lauren scoffed from behind her. "I know what I saw. You too weren't just hugging. It was obviously more than that."

"Was it?" Kaylie pressed and felt a lump grow in her throat. "Was it more than that?"

Kelly broke eye contact first and drew Austin's eyes away from Kaylie . She shook her head. "Nothing happened," Kelly said, pressing her lips together and meeting her eye again.

"But you have feelings for my boyfriend?" Kaylie asked, shaking her head, though it wasn't a question and she didn't require an answer. The betrayal clawed at her heart. "I don't believe you. I _trusted_ you. God, I asked him to let you stay at his place while you found a place to live. I can't believe this is happening to me, _again." _

"Kaylie," Kelly started again. "It's not like that. Things have been really hard and Austin's been there –"

"As a friend," Austin cut in. "Kaylie, nothing happened."

Kaylie felt something inside her snap, "But she isn't denying it. She has feelings for you. Who does that? Who feels that way about their friend's boyfriend?"

Austin's eyes narrowed. "I don't know, Kaylie, you tell me," he snapped back at her. "Who develops feelings for their friend's boyfriend?"

"What are you talking about?" Kaylie asked, though deep down she knew. She knew this would happen, since just before her beam routine and she caught sight of Emily and Damon in the stands. She knew that somehow everything would start to unravel.

"Why don't we ask Damon?" Austin said, sarcasm dripping from every word.

"Hey, let's leave me out of it," Damon said, raising his hands in defense.

Kaylie's anger faded a little a she looked over Austin's shoulders and saw Damon and Emily standing there hand in hand, a strong couple, despite the odds. Emily looked visibly upset and Kaylie felt her heart ache for a girl who she used to consider one of her closest friends, but whom she betrayed on a most basic level.

"Forget it," Austin said, running a hand through his hair. "I'm done." He stepped around her and walked away towards the crowd.

"Well, good, because so am I," Kaylie said to his retreating back, the ache in her chest growing, but covering it up with anger. She shook her head in disgust, at Austin, at Kelly and mostly at herself. She stormed away, Lauren at her side and kept her head high until they were out of earshot and that's when the first sob escaped her throat.

* * *

><p>"Wow," Emily said, as she stood awkwardly in the elevator bay with Damon and Kelly Parker, who looked on the verge of tears. The former national and world champion's lip trembled and she took off in same direction as Austin, disappearing down a hallway.<p>

"What exactly just happened?" Damon asked, his eyes wide. "Is that what Austin meant before about entertaining?"

"Uh, no I don't' think so." Emily shook her head and shrugged. "I have no idea and you know what's great?"

"What's that?" Damon asked.

"For the first time, it doesn't matter, not to us." Her hand fell protectively over the tiny bump in the line of her dress.

Damon smiled, leaning in and pressing a kiss to her forehead. "You wanna get out of here?" he asked.

"Let's just say hi to Payson and then yeah, I wanna get out of here," Emily said, holding out her hand, which Damon took, lacing his fingers between hers.

"You know, we are on the strip, all dressed up," Damon said, trailing off. He raised an eyebrow speculatively. "I could make an honest woman out of you."

Emily's heart clenched and she smiled brightly. "On second thought, I'll text Payson later. Let's get out of here."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: Climax, ahoy! And no, not the dirty kind, like the plot outline kind. Didn't your English teachers make you do those in high school? So yeah, everything just sort of exploded for…pretty much everyone. Insanity! Except for Emily and Damon, who are riding off into their own little dysfunctional sunset.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter.

Now, for those of you who don't already know, I've finally got my butt into gear when it comes to my original work. I've set up a blog for it and there's a link on my profile page to it, along with a link to set up an email alert system for updates to that blog. I know lots of you depend on email alerts here on this site to be notified for updates and so I thought this would be a good way for you to get updates for my original work as well! So go, check out the blog and sign up for an email update! There's a bunch of content already there, two major writing pieces, lots of pictures and some background information, so please read and comment, letting me know what you think. I guarantee, if you like my MIOBI stuff, you'll like my original work as well!

Even if you've been there already, there have been lots of updates in the last day or two! 


	23. Chapter 23

Sasha tapped his fingers against his thigh as the elevator car traveled down to the lobby. Running his hand through his hair he huffed out a breath just as the doors opened to an empty hallway. Frowning, he caught sight of two familiar figures rounding the far corner, but none of the girls he watched disappear into the elevator just minutes before were anywhere in the vicinity.

"They're probably already in the ballroom," Summer said, stepping out from behind him.

Humming his agreement, he avoided any eye contact and moved down the hall at a brisk pace, knowing she would need to take two or three quick steps to match his long stride.

"Sasha, wait, do you want me to talk to her instead?" Summer asked, catching up when her words drew him to an abrupt halt.

Looking down at her to be sure there was no misunderstanding, he said, "No," before immediately turning away and striding into the ball room, pushing into the crowd, though he knew there would be no getting lost in it, as he towered over virtually every other person in the room, a hazard of working in the world of elite gymnastics while standing over six feet tall.

"Sasha wait," she said again. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong," he insisted, raking his fingers through his hair again. "I'm doing what you asked. I'm trying to find Payson." His eyes flew over the crowd, trying to locate her in the sea of people. It should be easy enough. Like him, especially in those heels, she would be much taller than those around her. Pushing aside thoughts of those shoes and what he'd like to do to her while she wore them, and nothing else, Sasha tried to refocus his attention on Summer who was still speaking.

"It's just you've been acting strangely since the auction and I…"

Another pass of his fingers through his hair and Sasha frowned, wondering if there was any connection between swipes of frustration and male baldness. "Summer, I –," he began, but cut himself off as he spotted Payson across the room, standing with her agent. The slime ball had his hand at the small of her back, _again. _Swallowing down the knot of jealousy, he turned back to Summer. "I have to go talk to Payson."

Then he was gone, this time moving fast enough to credibly claim he didn't hear her entreaties to come back and talk to her.

He approached from behind, but as he hovered at her shoulder, he saw her entire body stiffen in awareness. "We need to talk," he muttered between clenched teeth, sparing a glance at the smartly attired couple she was addressing, probably reps from one of her sponsors or potential sponsors.

"Belov, this isn't," the slime ball started to say, but Sasha ignored him, taking a grip on Payson's elbow.

"Now," he said, firmly, beginning to turn away, but she laid a hand on his arm for a moment, stopping him.

"Excuse me for a minute," she said to the couple, smiling at them and then nodding to her agent.

They walked side by side in silence back to the elevator, the ride up feeling much longer than the one he took with Summer just minutes before. Glancing down he saw her staring ahead blankly, the stoicism a stark contrast to the athlete he watched on the floor enrapturing all who watched her or the passionate girl he pressed against the wall of his hotel room later.

She followed him back to his hotel room, the only place they could be assured of privacy, though as he flicked on the light and recalled the last time they were alone in this space, he wondered if there was any other place they could go.

Payson strode into the room confidently, sitting primly on the edge of the bed. Finally raising her eyes to his, they flashed quickly, though he couldn't identify the emotion. Anger? Passion? Hurt? It was impossible to tell.

"What did you want to talk about? Those were reps from Longines by the way."

Ignoring her words, he said the first thing that came to mind. "Nice outfit."

Pressing her lips together tightly she shook her head. "Thanks. Got it today."

"Borrow it off one of the showgirls?" Sasha cringed inwardly at his inability to speak without offending her.

She shook her head in disbelief and stood up, moving close to him. Now there was no mistaking the fire in her eyes; it was anger, pure unadulterated rage. "Nice. This is why you brought me up here? To call me a slut? Since when do you care? You made it very clear the other night that you don't."

"I lied," he whispered, inching closer.

Scoffing, she lifted her chin defiantly. "You were pretty convincing." The hurt in her voice echoed through and to Sasha it was like a punch to the gut.

"I wasn't convincing. You knew I was lying through my teeth. I'm a terrible liar, especially when I lie to you, _only_ when I lie to you," he said, lifting a hand to her cheek, brushing the soft skin.

"Then why do you keep doing it? Why don't you tell me the truth?" she asked.

Why didn't he? Dishonesty, even with the best of intentions, failed him more than once. It was time to be truthful.

"I'm falling in love with you."

* * *

><p>Payson opened her mouth to retort, digging deep inside her, hoping her next words would hurt him as much as he hurt her when his last statement finally pushed through her anger and pain. Love. He was falling in love with her. Damn him, he chose to say the one thing that could diffuse the ire coursing through her veins.<p>

"In love?" she whispered, taking a small step back, trying to clear her head.

Her anger gave way to an overwhelming confusion. She had not expected love. She thought attraction and affection. Not love. She didn't even know what love was, did she? He was her coach, her friend, her confidant, the man she wanted more than anyone else in the world, the only person who could anger or calm her with a touch or a glance. Was that love?

Sasha mistook her silence for something it wasn't. "I'm sorry," he rasped.

Meeting his eyes with hers, she stepped closer again. "Don't apologize for that. Don't ever apologize for something that wonderful." She smiled. "You love me?"

He looked away. "I shouldn't…"

"But you do," she finished for him, hoping that he didn't notice she hadn't responded in kind.

"I do," he affirmed.

She took him by surprise, as she pressed her lips against his. For a moment he didn't respond at all. Payson didn't wait for him to react, pushing up higher into demi-pointe, flicking her tongue lightly against his bottom lip. That spurred him into action, a hand finding purchase at her waist, the other winding into her hair, drawing her body against his as he slanted his mouth over hers.

Payson could count on two hands the number of times she cried in her lifetime and a have more than a few fingers left over, but as the idea settled over her, that he loved her, she felt tears gather, blurring her vision, glistening on her lashes. After a moment, breaking away, Sasha rested his forehead against hers, before brushing the tears away with his fingertips.

"Don't cry frumoasa mea fata; I never want to see you cry."

At his words, Payson kissed him again, tasting the salt of her tears on his lips. He deepened the kiss immediately and she wound her arms around his shoulders, as his arms encircled her, pulling her closer.

After a moment or two, the heat of their embrace ebbed away, reality slowly drawing them from the tiny world they created together, though they remained tangled in each other's arms.

"What do we do now?" she whispered, but in the quiet of the room she may as well have screamed.

Sasha's body stiffened, but she didn't allow him to draw away from her. "I don't know," he answered honestly.

"I'll be eighteen in just a few…" she began.

"It isn't about your age, Payson," he said, pulling free and running his hand through his hair roughly.

She pursed her lips, skeptical of the veracity of his last statement, which he amended quickly. "It's not _just_ your age," he said. "I'm your coach and I can't be your coach if I'm anything else. It's a line that shouldn't be crossed."

Payson looked away from him, the joy of the last few minutes seeping out of her bones. "So what, we go back to how it was? Pretending like this doesn't exist?" She motioned between them. "Feeling empty all the time. Wanting you all the time."

He raised an eyebrow and smiled crookedly. "All the time?" he repeated, obviously trying to lighten the suddenly heavy mood.

"All the time," she said, lifting her eyes to his.

Sasha leaned down quickly, his hand at her cheek, drawing her lips to his again. The kiss was hard and fast, but as he pulled away she smiled. At least she wasn't alone.

"You still haven't answered my question," she said. "What do we do?"

Sasha looked away, unable to meet her eyes as he made his next suggestion. "Just a few weeks ago, you told me you were never going to let a relationship get in the way of going for a gold. This certainly qualifies," he said.

Payson shook her head as the words spilled from his lips. "A frivolous relationship," she clarified. "This wouldn't be like that. This is different, but my questions stands, Sasha. What do we do?"

Shaking his head, Sasha sighed. "I just don't know. We need time to think," then he paused, "we need time to see if this is real."

Payson furrowed her brow, confused. "But you said you loved me." Panic rose in her chest. Was he about to take it back? Was falling in and out of love easy for him to do?

"I do love you," he said, before smiling ruefully, "but you didn't say it back."

Crap. Busted. Payson bit her lip. She wanted to say the words, but as they bubbled up her throat she remembered the last time she said them. Telling Max she loved him was one of the larger regrets in her life. She hurt him and Lauren and herself with that stupid, spontaneous moment and she promised herself that she would never use those words again unless she meant them fully along with all the things they implied. But then, maybe she did love him. What she felt for Max paled in comparison to the feelings for Sasha, swirling through her veins, making her heart pound and her head fuzzy.

Her mouth opened and she hesitated before she began. "I…"

"Don't," he cut her off. "That's okay. I don't need to hear the words, especially if you don't mean them. I love you, Payson and that's not going to change, but you need to understand what you're getting into here. I'm not perfect. I have a past and a long line of ex-girlfriends who would be more than willing to tell you just how bad I am at things like this."

Payson raised an ironic brow. "They don't have to tell me anything. You've proven that to me all on your own."

Sasha's eyes clouded over in guilt. "I promise you, love, if things were different I wouldn't have hesitated. Things aren't different and I barely have the strength to resist now." His gaze cleared and raked over her body taking in the outfit she wore for his benefit. "Christ, you look incredible."

"That was the idea," she admitted. "It's not too much is it? I don't really look like a showgirl, do I? I was trying to get your attention."

"It's not too much," he said. "And you certainly got my attention, along with every other man in that ballroom."

"Jealous?" she accused.

"Absolutely. That's something else you'll learn about me. You may not love what a jealous idiot I can be."

Shaking her head, she said, "You don't have anything to worry about."

"No? What about that kid, the pothead snowboarder, the one who made an fool out of himself trying to win your lessons at the auction?"

"Scott? I'm not interested."

"And what about that agent of yours? I don't like the look of him."

Payson raised her eyebrows. "Peter? Peter is sleeping with MJ. Not to mention, _I'm not interested_."

"And Max?" he asked.

He wasn't kidding. He did have a jealous streak.

"Ancient history," she said. "I only want you, no one else." She fell forward, leaning her hands on his chest, lifting her lips for him to kiss. He was more than happy to oblige, but then she pulled back. "What about you?"

"What do you mean?"

"You and Summer."

"Not an issue."

"Didn't seem that way at the auction," she said, taking a step away from him.

"Things aren't always what they seem, obviously," he said. He reached down and took her hand in his, entwining their fingers together.

"I thought," she said, trailing off, unable to keep her mind from spinning, "is that what you meant when you said you were bad at things like this? You thought you couldn't have me so…"

"Payson," he said, pulling on their joined hands, brining her closer. "I was an idiot."

"You were," she agreed. "It hurt to see you with her like that, it was like a lead weight in my chest. If you want to apologize for something, don't apologize for falling in love with me, apologize for that."

"I'm sorry," he said, immediately. "I'm so sorry."

"Forgiven," she said, leaning her forehead against his chest, inhaling his scent deeply. Soap and gym chalk and cedar and citrus.

"That easy?" he asked, his voice rumbling through him, echoing in her ear.

"This time," she said, wrapping her arms around him, holding on tightly. "Don't do it again."

Time slipped away from them for a while. Somehow, without remembering quite how they arrived in the position, Payson found herself lying in the center of his bed, staring up into Sasha's eyes as he lowered his mouth to her lips. The kisses were wet and hot and long, as they relished the opportunity to simply revel in each other. Who knew when they would be able to do this again? She barely understood what they just agreed to, let alone what it implied, but for now she tried to memorize the feeling of his calloused hardened fingers stroking back and forth against the skin of her abdomen and the taste of his lips.

Sasha was the one to finally break away, burying his face between her neck and her shoulder, inhaling deeply. "So we're okay, for now?" he asked, his words barely intelligible as his lips trailed against her pulse point.

"I think so," Payson said. "Thank you for being so understanding about why I couldn't…"

He lifted his head and pressed a kiss against her temple. "I love you and I'll spend every day of the rest of my life proving that to you, Payson, trying to earn your love in return."

The mood was too serious and Payson couldn't stand it, him looking at her like that. The guilt at not being able to say the words was too much, so she tried to lighten the air around them.

"Is that your answer to everything? That you love me?" she asked with a teasing smile.

"You don't like hearing me say it?" he asked, with a smirk of his own.

"I love hearing you say it," she admitted. "It's the best thing I've ever heard in my life."

"Mmmm," he hummed against her skin, kissing against her pulse point again and she groaned softly in appreciation. "I love you," he repeated, before nipping at the skin he just kissed. Her answering groan was louder than before and he smiled against her. "Like that?" he asked, though he knew the answer.

"Yes," she told him and was about to turn her head towards his for another kiss when a knock at the door startled them. The sound echoed through the room again.

"Sasha?" Summer's voice called through the barrier.

"Shit," Sasha cursed under his breath.

Payson raised an eyebrow at him. "Not an issue?" she asked, repeating his words from before regarding his relationship with his ex-girlfriend.

Rolling his eyes, he shook his head, obviously feeling this was more important than opening the door. "Not an issue," he reaffirmed. "She asked me to talk to you about your outfit and how inappropriate it is."

Payson shrugged. "It is inappropriate. My mother is going to kill me if any pictures from the party get out. Still, I don't see how it's any of _Summer's_ business what I wear. Then again, she does have a particular talent for getting involved in things that are none of her business."

Sasha hummed in bemused agreement. Offering her his hand, pulling her up from the bed. He leaned down and straightened the covers as she ran her fingers through her hair to try and disguise the reason for its disarray.

She sat in the armchair in the far corner of the room, pulling her legs up underneath her, attempting to look scolded, while Sasha answered the door. She couldn't hear what he said, but she saw Summer's head peak up and around his shoulder. Unable to help herself, she glared petulantly at the other woman, still feeling resentment for her part in the three pronged conspiracy to keep Lauren's betrayal from her, not to mention the instinctive jealousy that labeled Summer as her competition, whether Sasha felt anything for her or not.

Whatever Sasha said must have had the intended effect, because just moments later he was closing the door and turning back towards her.

"You should go."

"I should go"

They spoke together, in unison and they both laughed.

Sighing, she stood up and stepped towards him. She reached out and placed the palms of her hands against his forearms, pushing up again onto her toes and raising her lips to his.

"We'll work this out. I promise," he whispered as they drew away.

Payson released a shaky breath. "I'm holding you too that one, Belov," she joked. "I don't want you to be just a note on the dedication page to my biography. I want you to be so much more," she said, the mood shifting yet again from light hearted to serious. She was thrilled they could be both, but this back and forth was making her head spin.

She didn't wait for him to respond, slipping from his arms and leaving the hotel room. If she didn't leave in that moment, she knew she might not ever leave and that could lead to things she was definitely not ready for, no matter how much she yearned for it.

With zero intention of going back down to the party, she slipped her phone from her back pocket and texted Peter, using the excuse of being tired and playing up the need for rest before tomorrow's event finals.

In all the craziness with Sasha, she nearly forgot about just how well she managed to do today. Her closest all-around competition, Sophia Peterson, Marty's newest protégé, was more than two full points behind her. She only missed outscoring Lauren on beam by a tenth of a point, which was the likeliest explanation for Lauren's scathing remarks about her outfit earlier. Tomorrow, with her messy personal life finally falling into some semblance of order, she planned on dominating the field again and maybe even squeak out a gold medal on beam.

She was nearly to her hotel room, when the door across the hall flew open. Standing in the doorway was Kelly Parker, tear tracks running over her cheeks, her dress long gone, replaced by sweatpants and a raggedy sweatshirt that read, Boston Olympic Gymnastics across the front.

"You left your room key in here before," she said, her voice rough. "I switched your stuff with Jessica's."

Payson raised an eyebrow, but nodded, moving away from her old door and stepping into Kelly's room.

She looked around. The room that they left in what could conservatively be described as a mess, was now neat and organized. Payson saw her bags laid neatly on a luggage rack in the corner. Sitting on the bed that formerly belonged to their junior teammate, she looked up at Kelly and waited.

"So, you know how Kaylie was supposed to move in with me?" Kelly finally said, perching herself on the edge of her bed.

Payson nodded. "Yeah."

"That's so not happening anymore," Kelly said, not meeting Payson's eye, staring blankly at the wall behind her.

She knew that look. It was the same expression she saw on her own face when things with Sasha hit rock bottom. That could only mean one thing, hurt so bad you had to cover it up, otherwise it would eat you alive.

"What happened?" she ventured to ask, as obviously Kelly wasn't about to offer up any more information.

"Lauren," KP said. "And Austin and me and…I'm so stupid, Payson."

Sighing, Payson stood up and sat down next to Kelly. "You're not stupid," she insisted. That was the last word she would use to describe Kelly.

"I am. I finally make a friend, a real friend, someone whose willing to go out on a limb for me and I just ruin it."

"Kelly, I'm not sure I understand what happened," Payson asked. The last couple of weeks she was more than a little preoccupied with her own drama.

"Lauren had a picture of me and Austin hugging. She showed it to Kaylie," Kelly explained. "It was after I saw my mother the other day and I ran out. Austin found me and I was crying, so he gave me a hug and it was nice, you know? He's a good friend."

Furrowing her brow, Payson shook her head, remembering. Lauren went after Kelly. She must have seen them embracing and snapped a picture, thinking it was incriminating evidence. "So what? You guys hugged. Kaylie's not an idiot. She'll understand."

Kelly grimaced, fresh tears blooming in her eyes. "She understood, until Lauren accused me of having feelings for Austin."

Payson's lips formed a small, 'o' as the implications of those words settled around her. "And do you?" she asked.

Nodding roughly and wiping at the corners of her eyes with the heel of her hand, Kelly choked through a sob. "I didn't mean to and I would _never_ act on them, but I was caught so off guard when she said it, I just stood there and Kaylie went crazy on me and then on Austin and then he yelled at her and this is all my fault, me and my stupid crush."

The tears were flowing uncontrollably now and Payson wrapped an arm around Kelly's shoulders, hushing her lightly. "This isn't your fault, Kelly," she said. It was the truth. This was Lauren's fault. "You can't help how you feel, I know that and Kaylie will understand that."

"No, she won't. I ruined her relationship. I think her and Austin are done and she went off with Lauren and now it's just such a mess. I tried, you know? I tried so hard to be better, to make friends and be a good teammate and it all just imploded like everything always does."

Payson shook her head and pressed her fingers against Kelly's shoulder. "Hey, you are a good friend and a good teammate, a lot better than _some people_. You aren't the problem."

"Yeah? Then what is?"

With a heavy sigh, Payson sat back. "Kaylie and Lauren are the problem. They're best friends and they always will be, but I've never seen two people more capable of hurting each other. It's been that way since I've known them and getting between them is a dangerous thing."

"What do you mean?" Kelly asked, her tears finally subsiding.

"It's a long story," Payson warned.

"Give me the short version," Kelly insisted.

Payson nodded, trying to summarize it all in her head before she spoke. "When we were thirteen, just after I moved to Boulder, Lauren fell head over heels for Carter Anderson. I mean writing, Mrs. Carter Anderson on her stuff, flirting shamelessly around the gym, it was obvious to everyone, even Marty, but it was also obvious that Carter wasn't interested at all, but she held tight onto that crush for nearly two whole years until she realized how pathetic she was coming off to people, so she toned it down." She paused. "With me so far?"

Kelly nodded.

"It was right around that time that Kaylie and Carter started to date, secretly of course. Kaylie hid it because she didn't want to hurt Lauren. The no-dating rule was a convenient excuse. Then Lauren slept with Carter. Then Kaylie wanted him back. Then Carter chose Lauren which Lauren rubbed in her face every chance she got. It was such a huge mess, but it didn't matter because at the end of the day they are best friends and they always find their way back, no matter what crazy shit they do to each other," she finished, rolling her eyes at how ridiculous it all sounded when you said it out loud.

"Wow, that's like the most dysfunctional relationship ever," Kelly said.

Payson couldn't help, but agree. "Really, this is my fault. I should have warned you not to get between them."

Kelly snorted. "This is in no way your fault."

"What did Austin say?" Payson asked, knowing that it was likely Kelly already talked to him.

She just shrugged. "I apologized and he said that it wasn't my fault. We totally avoided the whole _feelings_ topic."

Payson frowned. "I'm sorry, Kel, this really sucks. I have an idea, how about I change into my pajamas and we watch a movie and forget about all this drama for a little while."

Kelly nodded quickly and Payson smiled.

"Hey," Kelly said, as she gathered her nightwear from her suitcase. "Did the outfit work? Did he notice."

Turning to her friend, she nodded. "It worked."

"And you still won't tell me who it is?" Kelly asked, a faux pout appearing on her face.

Payson shook her head. "Not tonight," she said, unable to keep the small smile from her face. "Tonight, it's just between me and him."

Understanding passed over Kelly face. "Okay, but then I get to choose the movie," she said, grabbing the remote and surfing through the hotel's on-demand options.

"Deal," Payson said, wandering into the bathroom. She looked into the mirror and for the first time in a long time saw herself in the reflection.

Astoundingly enough, complications and all, everything was falling into place. Her family was together and happy. The man she cared about more than anyone else in the world loved her. Despite themselves, Kelly Parker was becoming something akin to a best friend. And her dreams of Olympic gold were well on their way to coming true.

"Oh, they have _Gone with the Wind_," Kelly called from the other room.

"Sounds good," she said.

Sure, they would have to deal with the fallout of well, _everything_, but Payson smiled at her reflection, she would think about that tomorrow. It was, after all, another day.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: **Yes, I blatantly stole (paraphrased) that last bit from _Gone with the Wind_ and I don't care because it's on TV tonight and I can't wait. It's one of my favorites.

Hope you all enjoyed the chapter! I had a lot of fun writing it. Hooray for fluffy awesomeness and not angsty awfulness. Don't forget to review.

I've also got some new stuff up at my blog for _Game. Set. Match_. so head over to my profile and check it out or just go to to:

gamesetmatchanovel . blogspot . com (obviously w/o the spaces)

You get to know another main character this week. If you've always wanted to like Lauren, but her insanity keeps you from doing it, then I promise you will LOVE Indiana Gaffney. She's all the best parts of an outspoken, fierce competitor without the batshit crazy. I've also designed a cover for the book, which I'm kind of in love with, considering my total lack of graphic design skills. (Don't forget to leave a comment there too! I'm a feedback whore, you all know it, the more comments I get, the faster I write, that goes for original and fanfic!)


	24. Chapter 24

Austin tried to stretch in his seat, but the row in front of him was much too close. His long legs were bent around his seat and every time the little girl in front of him threw her head back, she was dangerously close to cracking her head against his knee.

The day was halfway over, both the uneven bars and floor final, dominated by the Rock. Payson won gold on each event; Kelly and Cassie finished second and third on bars and Kelly managed a bronze on floor, edging out Kaylie for the final medal. The NGO was getting a lesson about giving the Rock girls a challenge.

The crowd cheered as a line of gymnasts entered the arena and marched towards the raised platform in for the vault final.

Only three girls qualified on vault, performing the required two vaults during day one and all three were from the Rock.

Kaylie's brown ponytail bounced as she followed Lauren and Cassie Bartlet up the stairs and out onto the platform to salute the judges.

They were done. He wrestled with the idea all night, but he kept coming back to the same conclusion. He and Kaylie, no matter how much he wanted it to work, just didn't fit together. It wasn't the usual problem when two high caliber athletes got together. Usually, they were too similar, focused on their goals and not on each other. It wasn't even the opposite problem, his relaxed outlook clashing with her need to control her surroundings.

Kaylie ran down the carpet, towards the vault, landing her double twisting Yurchenko, but even from the stands, Austin saw the form break in her legs. A stupid mistake, one the World silver medalist on the event shouldn't be making.

Then her second vault, a handspring layout full, with a huge leg separation, it was obvious her focus just wasn't there. His eyes flickered to Sasha, standing below the platform, arms crossed over his chest. Their coach wasn't happy and Kaylie silently moved to the chairs lining the competition floor, passing out of his view.

He could deal with control issues. What he couldn't deal with was lack of trust. Nothing happened with Kelly and nothing would _ever_ have happened with Kelly or anyone else. Austin didn't cheat. Bad boy image aside, he was a good boyfriend and he knew it.

Her scores went up, an average of 15.35. Good, but not what Kaylie was capable of, not even close.

Trust wasn't something Kaylie would be able to pull out of thin air. She either trusted him or she didn't and based upon her reaction the night before when Kelly's silence reined in the elevator bay, Kaylie didn't trust him.

Lauren saluted after her first vault, a great handspring layout with a one and a half twist and the crowd cheered as the score posted, 15.5.

Austin watched Lauren move back towards the end of the run, nodding at whatever instruction Sasha was giving her as he mirrored her journey down on the floor. He should be pissed as hell at Lauren. That stupid picture she took of him and Kelly was the start of all the trouble last night, but the only emotion Austin felt was relief. He shouldn't be feeling relieved, not if he and Kaylie really belonged together, and yet, there it was.

Lauren nailed her second vault, a double twisting Tsukahara. She landed emphatically legs straight, chest and chin up. She saluted the judges who quickly awarded her with a 15.6, pushing her ahead of Kaylie with a 15.55 average score.

Lauren and Kaylie were world class on vault, but neither of them could hold a candle to Cassie Bartlet, the Rock junior, who vaulted two of the hardest skills in the women's Code of Points, an Amanar and a Chang and barring any total disaster, she would easily win this final.

Austin glanced at the empty seat beside him. Max flew back to Boulder early that morning. He was definitely moving out to Los Angeles, the coaches at All-Olympia were practically drooling over the idea of having a Men's National Team member at their famously female-centric gym. He was going to throw a huge send-off party next weekend.

Cassie Bartlet's final scores were posted.

"Ladies and Gentleman, the results of our vault final," the arena's announcer called, "Bronze to Kaylie Cruz, Silver to Lauren Tanner and Gold to Cassandra Bartlet, all from the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center. Let's give them a round of applause!"

Austin clapped politely.

"Up next," the announce called as the girls marched out of the arena, "the final event of the competition, the women's balance beam final."

Relieved or not, Austin wasn't in the mood to watch Lauren Tanner win a gold medal on anything. He would go back to his room and get his luggage. In just a few hours they would be back in Boulder, but everything would be different.

* * *

><p>"Good job, Payson," Sasha said as she moved down the platform stairs after her beam routine. It was a relatively new routine and the difficulty level was higher than anything she'd ever attempted, even prior to her back injury, but once she nailed the routine, it would be truly spectacular.<p>

He glanced up for her score, a tenth lower than the day before at 16.000. It would be enough for at least a silver medal, depending upon how Lauren performed next.

Purely on a professional level, attending this competition was a gamble that paid off tremendously. If Lauren hit her routine, the Rock would level Las Vegas with at leave with twelve of a possible fifteen medals and all five gold medals. Sasha glanced over at the front row of the stands where the newly appointed National Chairman Marcus McGowan was sitting with several other NGO officials. Marcus met his eye and nodded.

Sasha smirked and nodded back. He refocused his eyes on Lauren as she worked through her routine confidently before dismounting with a stuck two and a half twist.

"Nice, Lauren," he said as she jogged back down to the floor.

"Thanks," she said, smiling brightly and moving back to her chair to wait for her score. He glanced at his girls and then frowned. Kelly, whose routine wasn't nearly difficult enough at the moment to seriously challenge for a medal and Payson were sitting at one end of the row of chairs and Lauren was at the complete opposite end.

Sasha ran a hand through his hair. During the previous three rotations he'd been too busy to notice any tension. Shit. What could have happened between last night and today to cause another rift?

It was a pitfall of working with young athletes, but particularly young female athletes. Men resolved conflicts quickly; a solid fist to the jaw and then it was over, good or bad. Women carried tension with them for months, sometimes years. This was the last thing they needed in the months leading up to the Olympics.

He looked towards Payson as Lauren's score was posted, a 16.200, giving her the gold and completing the Rock's sweep.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the result of our balance beam final," the announcer called, "with the bronze, Tessa Grande of Denver Elite, with the silver, Payson Keeler of the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center and the gold, Lauren Tanner, also of the Rocky Mountain Gymnastics Training Center. This concludes our events for the weekend. Thank you for coming out and supporting Toys for Tots and USA Gymnastics!"

The girls lined up and were escorted out of the arena. Sasha moved in next to Payson as they walked toward the locker room.

"What happened with Lauren?" he asked, under his breath.

Her eyes flashed up to his and held. "I'll explain on the plane," she said. "It's not just Lauren."

He placed a hand on her tense shoulder and squeezed gently. He immediately felt her relax into the touch. He pulled away quickly, but she smiled at him gratefully before following the rest of the girls back towards the locker room to change.

Watching her go, all the worry from the last few minutes melted away. He shouldn't feel this way. He should be terrified and twisted into knots of guilt and self-loathing over what happened last night, but he couldn't muster those emotions anymore. He loved her and though she couldn't say it back yet, he was sure she loved him. They would be together, in secret or out in the open, whatever options were available to them, but as of last night, it was only a matter of time and for the first time in a long time, Sasha was happy.

* * *

><p>Their section of the plane was virtually silent. Kelly tapped her fingers against her armrest rhythmically, following the beat of the song in her headphones. Her phone was in airplane mode, so she couldn't receive texts, but she did get one just before boarding the plane:<p>

Dad: Congrats, Kell-Belle. You looked great out there!

She hadn't heard from him in months. Kelly thought back, trying to remember, maybe it was over a year now. Why did he contact her? Did he think that just because she was out on her own now that she'd forgive him? After he just up and left one day, leaving her with her crazy mother. Fat chance.

Payson's hand touched her arm lightly and Kelly pulled her headphones from her ears. "I'll be right back."

Kelly nodded and stretched out her neck as Payson stood and moved a few rows away where Sasha was sitting, an entire row to himself. Payson wasn't ready to tell her yet and Kelly respected that, but she didn't know who those two thought they were fooling. The sexual tension practically crackled in the air whenever they were near each other and they never missed an opportunity to touch each other. Maybe they were only fooling themselves. Sasha had self-sacrificial written all over him and Payson wasn't exactly the most experienced girl when it came to relationships.

She was still watching Payson and Sasha, whose heads were ducked close together as they spoke quietly when someone stepped into her view. Looking up, she bit her lip.

"Can we talk?" Austin said, though he didn't wait for an invitation, simply sat down in Payson's empty seat.

She shrugged. "I guess so."

"Look," he said, turning towards her, "I want you to know what happened with Kaylie wasn't your fault. It was going to happen sooner or later."

Kelly scoffed and rolled her eyes. "Of course it was my fault, Austin. She thought that I…that we…and I know I said it last night, but I'm so sorry."

"Stop apologizing, Kel. You can't help it if my many charms were too much for you," he joked, grinning crookedly at her.

He wasn't helping. She vowed to put those feelings behind her. Austin was off-limits, even if Kaylie never forgave her.

"I don't even know what I was feeling," she whispered. "It was just nice that someone was finally _nice_ to me, you know?"

Suddenly serious, Austin nodded. "Yeah, I know and look," he said, his hand falling down on top of hers, squeezing it, "you've been a good friend. I didn't expect that and you know you're gorgeous. I'm not that guy. I don't cheat, but I'd be lying if I said that your feelings were totally one-sided."

"Is this supposed to be making me feel better?" she asked, raising a brow at him.

"Umm, yes?"

She laughed. "It's working," she said, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders.

"Good," he said. "Friends?"

"Not like I have a ton of other options," she said, shrugging, "friends. I just want you to know though, I'm sorry things didn't work out with Kaylie. Do you think its really over?"

Austin glanced over his shoulder, where Lauren and Kaylie were sitting a few rows ahead of them. "Yeah," he said, "I do."

* * *

><p>Payson sighed, falling back into the seat next to Sasha.<p>

"You ready to tell me what happened?" he asked, marking the page of the book he was reading and tossing it into his carryon bag.

So she did, every painful detail that Kelly divulged the night before spilling from her lips, even though she probably should have held back some of it.

"Lauren," Sasha whispered, running his hands through his hair. "Will she ever learn?"

"I think," Payson said, "I think maybe this time it came from a good place." She was loathe to defend Lauren's behavior and she knew that the motivation for showing Kaylie that picture was probably entirely selfish, but Kelly _did_ have feelings for Austin and Payson wouldn't be all that shocked if he returned them.

Sasha shook his head. "That's no excuse."

"Maybe not, but it happened and I have a feeling the gym isn't going to be a pleasant place for a while."

"The holidays are right around the corner. It'll give everyone some time to cool off and be out of each other's way. I was talking to McGowan before we left the hotel, he wants Cassie to attend the Test Event in London in January, get her some international experience before the Games. Then when we get back, you and Kelly have the American Cup to prep for, then the Pacific Rims right after that. We should be so busy, no one will have time to be hacked off at each other."

Payson nodded, only slightly reassured, but she reached out and put her hand over his. "And what about…" she trailed off, knowing he would understand.

Sasha turned his hand over and entwined their fingers together. "We'll make time," he said. "I promise."

She took a deep breath and exhaled sharply. "Okay then," she said, slipping her hand from his and standing. "I'll let you get back to your book." She wanted to stay, wanted to lift up the armrest between the seats and curl her body into his, to grab a blanket from the overhead compartment and fall asleep in his arms. But that was impossible, so instead she turned and moved back towards her seat.

The rest of the flight was spent in the same awkward silence it started with, the lines firmly drawn, the physical manifestation being the three rows of seats between them, Kaylie and Lauren on one side, Kelly and Payson on the other.

* * *

><p>The bus pulled up to the Rock, as it usually did when they returned home from a competition. Payson squinted through the tinted windows and saw her entire family standing by their car waiting for her. She sighed, happy to see them, but regret twisted in her chest. How was she going to lie to them about what happened with Sasha. Even if they never asked her, even if it never came up, it would be a gigantic lie of omission. She hated lying, just in general and lying to her family was the worst.<p>

She still felt guilty for lying about the cortisone before Nationals and that was nearly two years ago.

"Hey Pay," her mom said, as she approached, rolling her suitcase behind her.

"Hi Mom," she said, falling into her open arms.

"Hey sweetie," her dad said, leaning into the hug as well, kissing the top of her head.

"Ladies, before you go," Sasha called out and everyone turned to face him. As his voice echoed out over the parking lot, her mom's hug tightened for a second before she leg go. "Fantastic job this weekend. We just showed the entire gymnastics community that our team here at the Rock is world class all the way through our ranks. Take tomorrow off and rest your bodies. I expect you all back here on Tuesday morning at 6, ready to work."

Payson thought of her medals, three gold and one silver, zipped in the front pocket of her luggage. Ignoring all the drama of the weekend and focusing on the gymnastics, it was definitely possible that every single member of the Olympic team this year would come from the Rock. Of course a lot could happen between that moment and the Olympic Trials.

On the way home they stopped at a friend of Becca's to drop her sister off for a sleepover. Payson was a little disappointed. She was looking forward to being with her family tonight. The novelty still hadn't worn off after her dad spent so much time away from them.

"How was the hotel?" her mom asked as they moved into the house.

"It was nice," Payson said, shrugging. Her surroundings never really registered much, one way or the other, when she was competing.

She narrowed her eyes at her parents as they both stood blocking the entrance to the hallway.

"There's something we want to talk to you about, Pay," her dad finally said.

She laughed. "Obviously," she said, raising her eyebrows.

Following them into the kitchen, they all sat down around the table. Payson stared at her parents, waiting for them to speak, but they stayed silent.

"You guys are starting to scare me," she said.

"We have to ask you a question, Payson and I need you to be completely honest with us."

"We know what happened with Sasha, that kiss," her father said, "we know that was just a mistake, Payson."

Payson nodded sharply. "Of course it was a mistake," she said, laughing nervously. "It was just a stupid…moment."

Her mom reached for her dad's hand on the table, squeezing lightly, like Sasha had squeezed her hand on the plane. The skin across her palm tingled remembering the touch.

"Payson, what we want to ask you," her mom said, struggling with each word, "is…"

"Payson," her dad cut in, "do you still have feelings for Sasha that are _more_ than…"

"Appropriate?" she finished for him. Her parents were more observant than she gave them credit for, she thought as her mind divided itself, half relief, half panic.

"Yes," her mom said, "appropriate."

She looked away, staring at the chalkboard mounted on the wall behind their kitchen table with stupid little messages she and Becca doodled, a shopping list for the week, their gym schedules.

Her dad broke into the silence. "Payson, it's…"

"Yes." She wanted to stand up and stomp out of the room. She wanted to call her parents ridiculous, but she couldn't do that. They were right.

"What?" her mom asked, her brow furrowing.

"Yes, my feelings for him aren't _appropriate._" She felt a pang in her chest at even saying the words out loud. They didn't feel inappropriate. Everything she felt with Sasha felt _right._

"Payson…"

"Sasha saved my life," she said, cutting off her dad. "He saved me and I…I can't help feeling this way about him."

"Payson, just because he…you're not obligated to…"

It seemed no one was really capable of saying the words out loud. Once they said the words, like love and want, there wouldn't be any taking them back.

"I don't, feel obligated," she said, quietly.

"What do you feel?" her mom asked.

"It's not…it's not much different than what I felt before," she said, waving her hand vaguely in the air. "It's just, more. I feel more."

Silence reigned for a moment and then two, until the tension built thick and heavy in the air.

"Does he feel the same?" her dad asked, though it didn't really sound like a question.

Payson hesitated. She couldn't tell them. They would freak out. They would hate Sasha, forever. She couldn't risk that.

"It doesn't matter," she said, "it doesn't matter what he feels or what I feel because we can't be together."

What happened in Vegas, as cliché as it was, had to stay in Vegas.

"None of it matters," she finished.

"Of course it matters, sweetie," her mom said, reaching across the table for her hand.

"No, it doesn't," she said, pulling her hands away, dropping them into her lap and twisting her fingers together. "It doesn't matter and it never will."

Payson couldn't take it anymore. She stood from the table and left the room grateful her parents let her go. The sobs built in her throat as she pulled her phone from her pocket and typed out a message. It was cowardly, but she couldn't say it to his face. It might kill her.

_We can't do this. I'm sorry. Please forgive me._

She waited, the tears blurring her vision. She let them fall as the phone buzzed in her hand.

_There's nothing to forgive. _

It was over, before it ever really began. She closed her eyes, remembering the feeling of his lips on hers, the calloused pads of his fingertips against her skin, the way it felt to lay in his arms. That's all she would have, memories and they would have to sustain her, maybe forever.

-fin

(for now...)

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Yes, I know it's been forever and for that I apologize. Most of you know I've been hard at work on my original story, _Game. Set. Match._ I'm now over 30,000 words into it and about half way done.

It's never taken me that long to write 30,000 words and because of that, I'm announcing an official fan fiction hiatus. I know, I know, I just updated for the first time in a long time, but if I officially focus my brain on GSM and get it down on the page, it'll free up my muse sooner rather than late for my MIOBI fics. Also, if you haven't been to my blog in a while, there's tons of new stuff up there for your reading enjoyment!

I want to assure you that I will DEFINITELY finish every fic I've started. I love these characters and the storylines too much to abandon them. It's just going to take me a lot longer than usual. Please be patient with me. You know how much I love you all and your support!

Now on to this story: It's actually finished. It's one of the reasons it took so long to write, because I don't like unhappy endings. I know, cruel right? Wrong. I told you the way Payson and Sasha get together in this story is much more realistic. And it is, in that they don't actually get together. Not yet, anyway. This story is one of many others in the "Chasing Glory" universe (they're labeled and numbered in their story summaries). I do plan on a series of sequels to it, mostly one shots, obviously about Payson and Sasha, but some about Kelly and others about Austin.


	25. A New Contest

****CONTEST IS OVER****

**WINNER: LAURAW89**

**Her Request: Smut from the Renegade and the Phoenix Universe! **

**MY BIG NEWS**

**The digital rights to my novel, _Game. Set. Match._ were purchased, along with the rights to two yet to be written sequels. **

**Yes, that's going to be around 200,000 words in that universe! The first book will be released in mid to late Spring of 2013!**

**Check out the details here: jenniferiacopelli dot ****blogspot dot com**


	26. GAME SET MATCH is Live!

Hi everyone,

As many of you know, the reason I stopped writing MIOBI fanfiction was that I was working on my own original work, GAME. SET. MATCH. I'm so excited to announce that GSM is out there in the world and ready to read!

Holly Sorensen, the creator of MIOBI was even kind enough to read it and write a blurb for the novel! Here's what she had to say:

"Everyone is playing for keeps both on and off the court in Jennifer Iacopelli's addictive first novel. If you like passionate girls who put it all on the line, hot men who are hard to read, and friendship that's about more than gossip and clothes, look no further than the Outer Banks Tennis Academy. There you'll find three rising stars, whose love, sweat and tears will have you cheering from page one. I can't wait for the next book!"

So if you loved NJYbA, Lost and Found, Chasing Glory and my other MIOBI fics, I think you'll love GSM too! The reviews so far have been awesome and one reader even compared it to MIOBI.

If you head to Amazon or Barnes & Noble's websites and type in my real name, "Jennifer Iacopelli" (what jci stands for, Jennifer Carolyn Iacopelli).

I want to thank you all for all of your support over the last few years!

Thanks so much!

JCI


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